C.  -i_'  ^'y'.   *^ti>? '?■:«"? ■-■■j'.py, .'f ^'ftg ^-v^r.^:; 


LIBRARY 

OF  THE 

University  of  California. 


^^^ — 


THE    OUT    OF    DOOR 
LIBRARY. 


sar 


IVA  TER  POLO  A  T  THE  NEW  YORK  A  THLI: 


THE  OUT  OF  DOOR 
LIBRARY  ^     ^     ^     ^ 


ATHLETIC 
SPORTS 


D.  A.  SARGENT,  M.D. 
H.J.  IVHIGHAM 
ROBERT  D.  IVRENN 
P.  G.  HUBERT,  JR. 


MARGUERITE  MERINGTON 
J.  IVEST  ROOSEVELT,  M.D. 
DUFFIELD  OSBORNE 
EDWARD  S.  MARTIN 


CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS 

1897 


Copyright,  1897,  by 
Charles  Scribner's  Sons. 


c^^^^ 


TYPOGRAPHY    BY   C   J.    PETERS  &   SON. 


PRINTED   BY    BRAUNWORTH,    MUNN   &    BARBER. 


CONTENTS 

I 

PAGE 

The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man^        3 

By  D.  a.  SARGENT,  M.D. 

II 

Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete*  ...     51 

By  D.  a.  SARGENT,  M.D. 

Ill 

Golf 107 

By  H.  J.  WHIGHAM. 

{Amateur  Champion  of  the  U.S.  in  z8q()») 

IV 

Lawn  Tennis 155 

By  ROBERT  D.  WRENN. 

{CJiampion  of  tfte  U.S.  in  l8(j/b^ 

V 

'bicycling — 

The  Wheel  of  To- Day 175 

By  p.  G.  HUBERT,  JR. 

Woman  and  the  Bicycle 211 

By  MARGUERITE  MERINGTON. 

A  Doctor's  View  of  "Bicycling 221 

By  J.  WEST  ROOSEVELT,  M.D. 

*  Prepared  for  publication  in  1887. 
vii 


213658 


Contents 

VI 

PAGE 

Surf  and  Surf -bathing 237 

By  DUFFIELD  OSBORNE. 


VII 

Country  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  America    .     2j^ 

By  EDWARD  S.  MARTIN. 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS 

IVaier  Polo  at  the  AVrr  York  AtJilctic  Clttb     .  .        Front ispiece 

The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man  — 

Figure     i.     Method  of  Testing  the  Strength  of  the  Chest  and 

Triceps P<^ge  3 

Figure     2.     Method  of  Testing  the  Strength  of  the  Back  and 

Legs 5 

Figure  3.     Method  of  Testing  the  Strength  of  the  Forearms 

and  Hands    .......  7 

Figure  A,        .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .11 

Figure  B.        ,         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .14 

Chart  I.     Plotted  from  the  originals  of  Figures  A  and  B   .        16 

Figure  C         ..........       19 

Figure  Z).         ..........       23 

Figure   E 27 

Chart  II.     Plotted  from  Figures  C,  D,  and  E     .         .         .29 

Figure  F.        .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         '31 

Figure    G 35 

Figure   H. 39 

Chart   III.     Plotted  from  Figures  F,  G,  and  H      .         .         .44 

Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete  — 

Figure     i.     {See  description  on  page  iji)  .         ,         .         •       5' 

Figure     2.        .         .         .         .         ,         .         .         ,         .         '53 
Chart       I.     Showing  the  comparative  Measurements  of  the 

Athletic  and  tion-Athletic  Classes         .         .       54 

Figure     3 55 

Figure     4 57 

Chart     II.     Plotted  from  Figures  i,  2,  3,  and  4      .  .  .58 

Figure  5a.         .         .         ,         .         .         .         .         .         .         .61 

Figure   5^.      i^See  description,  page  61)     .         .         .         .         -63 

Figure  6a 65 

ix 


List  of  Illustrations 

Figure  db.     {See  description  on  page  65)         ,         ,         ,      Page  66 
Chart  III.     Plotted  from  Figures  5  and  6      .         o         ,         .68 

Figure     7 70 

Figure  8a.        .......         t         ..  72 

Figure  Si>.     {See  description,  page  72)     .         .         ,         .         '  IZ 

Chart    IV.     Plotted  from  Figures  T  and  Z      .         «         .         .  74 

Figure     9 <>         '  n 

Figure  10 79 

Figure  \\a.        ..........  80 

Figure  lib.    {See  description, page  %6) 81 

Chart      V.     Plotted  frojn  Figures  q,  10,  and  11      ...  82 

Figures  12  and  13.     .........  83 

Chart    VI.     Plotted  from  Figures  12  atw^/  13  .         ,         .         .86 

Figure  14 ZZ 

Figure  i^a 89 

Figure  \^b.     {See  description, page  ?>()) 91 

Figure  \6a.        ..........  95 

Figure  \6b.     {See  description,  page  ()i)     .....  97 

Figure  xdc.     {See  description,  page  (^^^ 99 

Chart  VII.     Plotted  from  Figures  14,  15,  and  16    .         .         .  102 


Golf- 


Shinnecock  Hills  Golf  Club 107 

Plan  of  Newport  Golf  Club-house 108 

A  Clean  Miss 109 

Uncertaiti  Arithmetic       .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .110 

Willie  Dunn'' s  Shop  at  Shinnecock iii 

The  Drive 113 

Fore! 115 

Leg  Wrappings 117 

Teinper I20 

Farmhouse  formerly  used  as  a  Club-house  by  the  Chicago  Golf 

Club 121 

Lost  Ball  in  the  Meadow 122 

Topped 123 

Four  Strokes  at  the  Bunker  and  not  over  yet  .         .                 .  125 

Smoking-room  of  the  Essex  County  {Mass.)  Club     .         ,         .  126 

Essex  County  {Mass.)  Club  Entrance 127 

X 


List  of  lllustratiotts 

On  the  Green P^g^  129 

Enthusiasm i-JO 

Wasted  Time 131 

Playing  as  if  He  owned  the  Green 133 

The  Golf -Links  at  Tuxedo       , 135 

Stymie  or  not  Stymie? 137 

A  Good  Lie 139 

The  St.  Andrews  Club,  Yonkers,  N.Y. 140 

A  Foozle 144 

Tail-piece 152 

Lawn  Tennis  — 

Fore-hand  Volley 155 

The  Smash 157 

Fore-handed  Service •     ^59 

Reverse  Over-hand  Service .160 

End  of  Under-hand  Twist  Service  .         .         .         .         .         ,162 

Fore-hand  Stroke      .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         ,163 

End  of  a  Back-hand  Stroke,  0^  the  Ground     .         .         0         .165 

The  Cut 167 

Back-hand  Volley     .         .         .         .       - 168 

Back-hand  Half  Volley .169 

Half  Volley  Backward 171 

bicycling .     The  Wheel  of  To-T)ay  — 

Head-piece »     1 75 

The  Grand  Circle  at  Fifty-ninth  Street  and  Eighth  Avemte, 

New  York -179 

The  Start  from  the  Westchester  Country  Club         .         .         0     185 
Claremont  Hill — Riverside  Drive,  New  York  .         .         .189 

At  the  Michaux  Club,  New  York 197 

Tea  at  the  Michaux  Club 203 

IVoman  and  the  'Bicycle  — 

Correct  Position         .         .         .         , 2li 

A  Gibson  Bicycle  Girl 213 

Correct  Position         .         .         .         .         «         .         .         ,         o2i6 

A '■'■Scorcher'''' — Wrong  Position 217 

xi 


List  of  Illiistratiotts 

A  Doctor 's  View  of  bicycling  — 

Ai  Rest  —  Muscles  of  Arm,  Body,  and  Neck  Relaxed      .    Page  222 
In  Action  —  Muscles  of  Neck,  Shoulder,  Arm,  and  upper  parts 

of  the  Body  Contracted       .......  223 

A  Side  View  of  A.  A.  Zimmerman  in  Racing  Position  on  a 

Wheel  of  His  own  Design 225 

Rear  View  of  Zimmerman  —  At  Rest      .....  227 

Rear  View  of  Zimmerman  —  In  Action  .....  229 

Surf  and  Surf-Bathing  — 

Head-piece         .         .         .         .         ,         .         ,         .         ,         .237 

Figure     I .     240 

Figure     2,         .         .         ,         .         .         .         .         .         ,         .     243 

Figure     3 248 

Figure     4 251 

Figt^re     5 253 

Figure     6.         .........         .     255 

Figure     7 256 

Figure     8 257 

Figure     9.         .         .......         .         .259 

Figure   10 262 

Figure   11 263 

Country  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  America  — 

Kennels  and  Stables  of  the  Rockaway  Hunt  Club    .         .         .273 

The  Dining-room  of  the  Rockaway  Club 275 

After  a  Day's  Run  at  Cedarhurst  —  The  Rockaway  Club       .  277 

The  Radnor  Kennels 280 

A  Corner  of  the  Di7iing-hall 280 

The  Radnor  Hunt  Club  of  Philadelphia  quartered  near  Bryn 

Mawr 281 

Start  of  the  Meadowbrook  Club  at  Southampton  .  .  .  285 
Waiting  for  the  Word.     {Meet  of  the  Meadowbrook  Hunt  at 

Southampton,  L.I. ,  in  the  Fall  of  \%()\)  .  .  .  .289 
Lunch  on  Race-day  at  the  ''■Kennels^''  the  Headquarters  of  the 

Flkridge,  Md.,  Hunt  Club 291 

The  Start  from  the  Kennels.      The  Flkridge,  Md.,  Club          .  293 

The  Pack  of  the  London,  Ont.,  Club  in  front  of  the  Club-house,  297 
xii 


List  of  Illustrations 

Headquarters  of  the  Green  Spring  Valley  Hunt  Club  —  The 

old  Stone  Tavern  on  the  Reisterstown  Turnpike.  Baltimore 

County^  Md.       ........    Page  299 

Cross  Country  in  the   Genesee    Valley.       The    Genesee  Hunt 

Club 303 

Meet  of  the  Meadoivbrook  Hunt  at  Mr.  Theodore  Roosevelt  '5 

House.,  Oyster  Bay.,  L.I.     .         .         .         .         .         ,         •     305 

A  Meet  of  the  Rockaway  Hunt  Club         ....      308,  309 

The  Button    of  the  Montreal   Club  —  The  oldest  organized 

Hunt  Club  i7i  America    .         .         .         .         .         .         •     3'i 

Taking  the  Hounds  out  for  Exercise.      The   Genesee  Hunt 

Club 312 

The  Pack  of  the  Myopia  Hunt  Club 314 

Where  the  Dogs  are  kept.      The  Genesee  Hunt  Club,  Genesee, 

N.Y. 315 

The  Myopia  Club-house  at  Hamilton,  Mass 316 

Kennels  of  the  Myopia  Hunt  Club  .         .         .         .         .         .318 


THE  PHYSICAL  PROPORTIONS 
OF  THE  TYPICAL  MAN 

By  D.  A.  Sargent,   M.D. 


Fig. 


Method  of  Testing  the  Strength  of  the  Chest  and  Triceps 


T  no  time  in  the  history  of 
1  our  country  has  more  atten- 
tion been  given  to  the  subject 
of  physical  training  than  is 
given  to  it  at  the  present  day. 
Schools,  colleges,  and  Christian  associa- 
tions are  building  costly  gymnasia,  while 
athletic  organizations,  ball-clubs,  tennis- 
clubs,  boat-clubs,  etc.,  are  forming  in  many 
of  our  towns  and  cities. 

Fifteen  thousand  dollars  is  expended 
annually  to  bring  the  Yale  and  Harvard 
boat-crews  together  at  New  London,  and 
it  is  estimated  that  fifty  thousand  dollars 
does  not  meet  the  yearly  expenses  of  the 
athletic  organizations  of  these  two  univer- 
sities.    Add  to  this  sum  the  cost  of  athletic 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the   Typical  Man 

sports  to  the  smaller  colleges  and  city  clubs, 
and  the  total  would  foot  up  in  the  mil^ 
lions. 

The  object  of  this  outlay  is  to  vanquish 
some  rival  club,  to  win  a  championship,  to 
beat  the  record,  or  to  furnish  recreation  and 
amusement  to  those  who  are  willing  to  pay 
for  it.  With  the  representatives  of  our  in- 
stitutions of  learning,  and  with  a  portion  of 
the  intelligent  public,  the  object  of  the  en- 
couragement given  to  athletics  is  to  coun- 
teract the  enervating  tendency  of  the  times, 
and  to  improve  the  health,  strength^  and 
vigor  of  our  youth. 

This  being  the  fact,  the  questions  at  once 
arise :  How  large  a  proportion  of  young 
men  in  the  land  systematically  practise 
athletics  ? 

Probably  less  than  one  per  cent. 

How  large  a  proportion  of  those  who 
are  members  of  athletic  organizations  take 
an  active  part  in  the  sports  fostered  and 
patronized  by  their  respective  clubs  ? 

Probably  less  than  ten  per  cent. 

In  the  opinion  of  the  writer,  the  cause 
for  so  little  active  interest  in  athletics  is  an 
increasing  tendency  with  us,  as  a  people,  to 
pursue  sport  as  an  end  in  itself,  rather  than 
as  a  means  to  an  end. 

In  making  excellence  in  the  achieve- 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

ment  the  primary  object  of  athletic  exer- 
cises, we  rob  them  of  half  their  value  in 
various  ways  :  — 

( I . )  By  increasing  the  expense  of  training. 
The  money  expended  at  the  present  day  on 
an  athletic  team  is  greatly  in  excess  of  the 
amount  spent  upon  the  same  number  of 
men  a  few  years  ago.  This  increased  ex- 
penditure may  be  attributed  to  the  im- 
proved facilities  demanded  for  practice,  to 
the  establishment  of  train- 
ing-tables, the  employment 
of  "  coaches,"  or  trainers, 
and  special  attendants,  —  the 
latter  to  anoint  and  rub  the 
athletes,  look  after  the  boats, 
ground,  running-tracks,  etc., 
—  to  the  purchase  of  uni- 
forms, the  expenses  of  travel- 
ling, etc.  A  long  purse  is 
fully  as  essential  to  suc- 
cess in  athletics  as  in  war 
or  politics. 

(ii.)  By  increasing  the 
time  devoted  to  practice. 
In  former  years  it  was 
deemed  advisable  to  prac- 
tise no  sport  out  of  season. 
At  the  present  time  it  is         Fig.  ^.- Method  o/ 

1  Testing  the  Strength 

found   necessary   to   skate       o/ Back  and  Legs. 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the   Typical  Man 

in  the  summer,  and  to  row  and  play  ball 
in  the  winter  months,  in  order  to  main- 
tain the  high  standard  of  excellence  de- 
manded of  those  who  would  win  prizes 
in  these  events.  In  fact,  any  athlete,  to 
stand  above  mediocrity  in  his  chosen  sport, 
must  keep  in  practice  the  greater  portion 
of  the  year.  So  severe  a  tax  is  this  upon 
the  time  and  energies  of  those  who  are 
engaged  in  other  occupations  that  it  is 
quite  impossible  for  them  to  attend  to  busi- 
ness ;  consequently  the  attempt  to  make  a 
business  of  sport  is  the  first  step  in  the  di- 
rection of  professionalism.  It  is  a  question, 
indeed,  if  many  <^i  our  so-called  amateurs, 
who  devote  so  much  of  their  time  to  the 
practice  of  athletics,  do  not  belong  to 
the  professional  class.  In  either  case,  the 
effect  they  have  upon  the  practice  of  ath- 
letics is  detrimental. 

(hi.)  By  reducing  the  number  of  active 
competitors.  A  characteristic  trait  of  hu- 
man nature  is  the  desire  to  excel.  Ex- 
cellence in  one  thing  often  presupposes 
excellence  in  another,  though  none  knows 
better  than  the  specialist  in  athletics  how 
weak  he  is  outside  of  his  favorite  sport. 
A  man  who  gains  the  reputation  of  being 
a  champion  oarsman  or  tennis-player  will 
in  all  probability  confine  his  athletic  ef- 

6 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Mun 

forts  to  his  specialty,  thinking  it  unwise  to 
risk  a  well-earned  reputation  as  an  expert 
in  one  sport  by  dawdling  with  another. 
Moreover,  so  strong  is  this  desire  to  be- 


Fig.  3.  —Method  0/  Testi>ig  tJu  Strength  of  the  Forearms  and  Hands. 


come  a  skilful  exponent  of  an  art  or  sport 
which  one  has  adopted  as  a  pastime,  that 
as  soon  as  circumstances  debar  a  man  from 
the  required  amount  of  practice  necessary 
to  maintain  a  high  degree  of  excellence, 
he  is  likely  to  withdraw  from  all  active 
participation  in  the  game.  In  this  way 
the  number  of  competitors  in  every  sport 
is  gradually  reduced,  until  the  actual  prac- 
tice is  left  largely  in  the  hands  of  a  class 
of  experts. 

(iv.)    By  relying  upon  natural  resources 
rather   than    upon   cultivated  material.      As 


TIte  Physical  Proportions  of  the   Typical  Man 

athletics  approaches  a  higher  standard  the 
time  required  for  development  is  necessa- 
rily lengthened.  For  this  reason  those  who 
are  naturally  strong  and  vigorous,  or  who 
have  inherited  or  acquired  the  qualifica- 
tions requisite  to  success  in  a  given  sport, 
are  in  great  demand.  The  college  clubs 
look  to  the  academies,  the  academies  to 
the  schools,  the  schools  to  homes  and 
firesides,  to  furnish  candidates  for  athletic 
honors,  \yhile  many  of  the  city  clubs  are 
eager  to  absorb  members  from  any  source 
that  is  capable  of  supplying  them  with 
good  athletic  material. 

(v.)  By  depriving  the  non- athletic  class  of 
every  incentive  to  physical  exertion.  So  long 
as  accomplishing  a  feat,  winning  a  prize, 
and  breaking  a  record,  are  the  only  objects 
of  systematic  physical  training,  a  man  who 
lacks  the  requisite  qualifications  of  a  suc- 
cessful athlete  is  likely  to  despair  at  the 
outset.  Ask  the  members  of  any  athletic 
organization  why  they  do  not  take  an  ac- 
tive interest  in  the  sports  their  club  is  sup- 
posed to  foster,  and  you  will  be  told  that 
the  standard  is  too  high  for  them,  that 
they  cannot  spare  the  time  for  practice,  or 
that  they  are  too  light  or  too  heavy,  and 
would  not  be  a  credit  to  the  club. 

In  our  colleges  few  men  practise  run- 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

ning,  rowing,  ball-playing,  etc.,  system- 
atically without  a  hope  of  becoming  mem- 
bers of  the  "  crew,"  "  nine,"  or  "  eleven." 
"  No  chance  for  the  prize  "  is  considered 
a  laudable  excuse  for  neglecting  many  ad- 
mirable exercises,  such  as  sparring,  fencing, 
and  jumping. 

In  consequence  of  this  erroneous  idea  as 
to  the  ultimate  object  for  which  all  sports 
are  encouraged,  a  small  portion  of  the 
community  are  overdoing  the  practice  of 
these  valuable  adjuncts  to  health  and  edu- 
cation, while  the  vast  majority  are  not 
availing  themselves  of  their  advantages. 
In  fact,  the  importance  of  winning  an  ath- 
letic victory  is  becoming  so  exaggerated  in 
the  minds  of  many  young  men,  that  some 
of  them  have  already  resorted  to  unscru- 
pulous methods  as  a  means  to  the  much- 
desired  end. 

Many  men  fail  to  realize  that  the  real 
value  of  athletics  is  in  the  preparatory 
training,  not  in  the  contest  or  in  the  prize. 
Long  before  the  day  of  trial,  unjseen  forces 
are  at  work  building  up  a  structure  fit  to 
stand  the  test  and  to  make  a  noble  effort 
for  the  victory.  Whether  the  coveted 
prize  be  won  or  lost  is  of  little  importance 
compared  to  the  prize  in  shape  of  an  im- 
proved physique  already  in  possession  of 


The  Fltysical  Proportion  of  the   Typical  Man 

those  who  have  undergone  a  faithful  course 
of  training. 

(VI.)  By  arousing  the  spirit  of  antagonism 
and  fostering  viciousness  and  brutality.  In 
all  competitive  sports  that  bring  individuals 
into  personal  contact,  such  as  wrestling, 
sparring,  foot-ball,  lacrosse,  polo,  etc.,  there 
is  a  constant  tendency  to  roughness  and 
brutality.  The  object  being  to  ''  win  at 
all  hazards,"  the  reason  for  the  roughness 
is  apparent.  These  sports  without  doubt 
furnish  the  best  kind  of  general  exercise 
for  the  body,  and  develop  courage,  manli- 
ness, and  self-control.  How  to  retain  the 
good  features,  and  to  hold  the  evil  ones  in 
check,  are  the  problems  that  are  ever  pres- 
ent to  those  who  are  interested  in  the 
preservation  of  these  invigorating  pastimes. 
They  are  worth  perpetuating,  and  ought 
not  to  fall  into  disrepute  for  the  want  of  a 
few  friends  to  throw  a  protecting  influence 
around  them.  Certain  it  is  that  as  soon 
as  brutality  gains  the  ascendency  gentle- 
men will  cease  to  compete,  and  the  sport 
will  fall  into  decline.  It  is  a  question  now 
in  the  minds  of  many  whether  some  of 
these  sports  have  not  already  reached  a 
stage  of  deterioration  in  which,  in  the 
colleges  at  least,  their  future  existence  is 
threatened. 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the   Typical  Man 

(VII.)  By  depriving  them  of  theiy-  efficacy 
as  a  means  to  health.  An  individual  having 
this  aim  (excellence  in  the  achievement) 
in  view,  and  having  decided  upon  a  spe- 
cialty in  athletics,  at  once  proceeds  to 
strengthen  those  muscles  most  used  in  his 
chosen  sport.  The  runner 
or  jumper  develops  his  legs, 
the  oarsman  his  legs  and 
back,  and  the  gymnast  his 
arms,  chest,  and  shoul- 
ders. The  runner  ar- 
gues that  the  heavier  his 
body  is  above  the  hips, 
so  much  more  of  a  bur- 
den is  there  for  him  to 
carry;  the  gymnast  rea- 
sons in  a  similar  way 
with  regard  to  the  weight 
oi  his  body  below  the  hips. 

There  is  a  constant  ten- 
dency on  the  part  of  special- 
ists to  overdevelop  a  few 
sets  of  muscles,  and  to  un- 
dervalue the  importance 
of  keeping  the  muscles 
all  in  a  healthy  condition, 
through  incompleteness  of  structure  and  a 
want  of  harmony  in  function,  some  local 
weakness  is  produced  which  sooner  or  later 


Figure  A. 


Consequently, 


Thf  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

not  only  incapacitates  the  individual  for 
any  great  mental  or  physical  effort,  but 
also  renders  him  liable  to  disease. 

What  is  true  of  athletics  to-day  was 
equally  true  of  gymnastics  some  fifteen  or 
twenty  years  ago.  Many  of  our  college 
and  city  gymnasia  were  in  the  hands  of  a 
class  of  experts  and  specialists,  who  selected 
the  apparatus  as  a  means  of  exhibiting  their 
strength  and  prowess  rather  than  a  means 
of  physical  culture  and  self-improvement. 
The  weaker  members,  finding  few  forms 
of  apparatus  that  were  suited  to  their 
capacity,  would  stand  idle,  content  with 
admiring  the  exploits  of  their  more  vig- 
orous companions.  In  fact,  a  man  was 
made  to  feel  that  the  gymnasium  was  no 
place  for  him  unless  he  at  least  could  turn  a 
backward  somersault,  do  the  giant's  swing, 
or  hang  by  his  toes. 

It  would  be  foreign  to  my  purpose  to 
carry  this  discussion  any  further  at  the  pres- 
ent time.  My  object  has  been  merely  to 
show  that  all  sports,  exercises,  and  pastimes, 
pursued  as  ends  in  themselves,  are  necessa- 
rily limited  to  a  very  small  class,  and  con- 
stantly tend  to  degenerate. 

What,  then,  can  be  done  to  make  physi- 
cal exercise  more  attractive  to  the  masses, 
and  to  relieve  our  popular  sports  of  some 


12 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

of  the  evils  that  tend  to  degrade  them  ?  I 
know  of  no  better  way  of  accomplishing 
this  desirable  end  than  by  repeatedly  re- 
minding the  individual  of  the  ultimate  aim 
of  every  kind  of  physical  exercise.  Do 
not  the  harmonious  development  of  the 
physique,  and  the  building  up  and  broad- 
ening out  of  the  highest  types  of  manhood 
and  womanhood,  offer  an  inducement  to 
work  for? 

This  has  been  the  theme  of  the  philoso- 
phers and  sages  of  all  times.  Every  writer 
on  education,  from  Plato  to  Herbert  Spen- 
cer, has  advocated  physical  activity  as  a 
means  of  attaining  that  full-orbed  and 
harmonious  development  of  all  parts  of 
the  human  economy  so  essential  to  robust, 
vigorous  health. 

We  have  had  no  end  of  treatises  on  the 
sports,  games,  and  gymnastic  exercises  that 
are  reputed  to  give  strength  and  symmetry 
to  the  body  ;  but,  unfortunately,  the  wise 
and  good  men  of  old  have  left  us  no  stand- 
ards by  which  to  judge  of  symmetry  or 
strength.  The  ancient  masterpieces  are 
models  of  symmetry  and  beauty,  but  they 
were  made  largely  from  ideal  standards, 
certainly  not  from  actual  measurements ; 
while  the  miraculous  exhibitions  of  strength 
attributed  to  some  of  the  Grecian  athletes 


13 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the   Typical  Ma?i 

must,  in  the  light  of  the  present  day,  be 
regarded  as  a  triile  mythical.  Is  this  love 
of  symmetry  in  form  a  myth,  or  has  it  a 
deep  moral  significance  ?  I  hold  that  it 
has  not  only  a  moral  significance,  but  also 
a  physiological  significance,  and  that  the 
size,  shape,  and  structure  of  the 
body  have  a  direct  dynamic  re- 
lation to  all  the  vital  organs,  and 
appreciably  influence  the  func- 
tions of  the  brain  and  nervous 
system. 

Aside  from  the  investigations 
of  the  Provost-Marshal-General's 
Bureau,  of  the  Sanitary  Com- 
mission, on  recruits  during  the 
late  war,  and  of  the  Anthropo- 
metric Committee  of  the  British 
Association  for  the  Advancement 
of  Science,  but  little  systematic 
eflFort  has  been  made  to  obtain 
reliable  information  by  means  of 
physical  measurements.  As 
to  the  actual  size  or  propor- 
tions of  the  body  at  various 
ages  and  among  different  na- 
tionalities, there  are  absolutely  no  data  to 
which  we  can  turn  for  assistance  in  shaping 
the  course  of  growth  and  development. 
True,  there  is  an  abundance  of  data  on  the 


Figure  B. 


14 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the   Tyfiical  Man 

height,  weight,  and  chest-girth  of  person- 
of  different  ages  and  nationaUties,  and  the 
dimensions  of  other  parts  of  the  body  have 
been  taken  at  various  times  by  artist  anat- 
omists, miUtary  surgeons,  and  gymnasiarchs, 
yet  no  one  system  of  measurements  has  ever 
been  adopted  by  any  two  examiners  ;  on  the 
contrary,  each  observer  has  taken  measure- 
ments for  a  specific  purpose,  according  to 
a  system  pecuUar  to  himself,  so  that  we 
look  in  vain  for  anything  like  harmony 
or  congruity  in  the  results  obtained.  In 
some  cases  the  subjects  are  measured  or 
weighed  without  clothing,  and  in  others 
partly  or  completely  clothed.  In  one 
class  of  measurements  the  height  is  taken 
with  the  boots  on,  in  another  class  with 
the  boots  off,  while  by  another  observer 
the  girth  measurements  are  taken  with  the 
muscles  contracted  at  one  part  of  the  body. 

What  is  most  needed  at  the  present  day 
is  a  uniform  system  of  measurements,  and 
a  common  understanding  among  observers 
as  to  what  points  and  under  what  condi- 
tions the  various  parts  of  the  body  are  to 
be  measured ;  a  great  step  will  then  be 
taken  toward  securing  valuable  anthropo- 
metric data. 

Having  resolved  some  years  ago  to  make 
physical   training  my  profession,  and  be- 

15 


The  Physical  Proportiofts  of  the  Typical  Man 


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i6 


««</  A 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

lieving  that  all  teaching  should  be  preceded 
by  inquiries  into  the  "  nature,  capabilities, 
and  requirements  of  the  being  to  be  taught," 
I  began  a  system  of  independent  investi- 
gation with  regard  to  the  growth  and  de- 
velopment of  the  body  under  the  various 
conditions  of  life. 

I  was  moved  to  this  undertaking  by  the 
conviction  that  whatever  might  be  the  na- 
ture of  the  physical  training  pursued,  the 
ultimate  object  should  be  the  improvement 
of  the  individual.  "  The  indispensable  part 
of  the  experimental  observation  of  physical 
facts,"  says  a  distinguished  philosopher,  "is 
the  measurement  of  quantities." 

I  resolved,  therefore,  to  widen  the  range 
of  observations,  believing  that  on  the  sim- 
ple factors  —  weight,  height,  and  chest- 
girth  —  could  not  be  based  a  true  estimate 
of  one's  physical  condition.  I  had  seen 
weight  obtained  at  the  expense  of  struc- 
ture, height  at  the  expense  of  circumfer- 
ence, and  the  girth  of  the  chest  increased 
as  the  girth  of  the  lower  limbs  diminished. 
I  had  found  that  increase  of  stature  might 
be  largely  due  to  great  length  of  neck  and 
legs,  with  a  comparatively  short  body,  and 
that  these  proportions,  which  would  indi- 
cate weakness  rather  than  strength,  could 
not  be   brought  out  by  taking   only  the 

17 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the   Typical  Man 

Stature.  Realizing  how  much  depends 
upon  the  proportions  of  the  different  parts 
of  the  body,  the  comparative  size  of  body 
and  hmbs,  the  difference  between  bone 
and  muscle  measurements,  etc.,  I  began 
my  observations  by  an  extended  series  of 
measurements. 

My  next  aim  was  to  test  the  strength 
of  the  most  important  parts,  so  far  as  this 
was  practicable.  As  a  general  rule,  the 
girth  of  the  upper  arm  may  be  said  to 
represent  the  potential  strength  of  the 
biceps  and  triceps  muscles.  So,  too,  the 
girth  of  the  forearm,  thigh,  leg,  or  chest 
is  usually  indicative  of  the  latent  power 
of  the  muscles  in  that  particular  region. 
These  facts  are  familiar  to  any  schoolboy 
who  has  learned  from  his  daily  experiences 
to  associate  size  with  strength.  There  are 
many  exceptions  to  this  rule,  however ; 
and  the  record  of  the  tape-measure  often 
needs  to  be  confirmed  by  an  actual  strength 
test.  In  order  to  make  these  trials,  I  had 
recourse  to  three  spring-dynamometers,  a 
spirometer,  manometer,  a  pair  of  suspended 
rings,  and  a  set  of  parallel  bars.  With  these 
appliances  it  is  possible  to  test  the  strength 
of  nearly  every  part  of  the  body.  I  lim- 
ited these  tests  to  the  back,  legs,  chest, 
upper  arm,  and  forearm. 

i8 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

The  strength  of  the  back 
and  legs  was  tested  by  a 
dynamometer  (see  Fig.  2). 
The  strength  of  chest,  tri- 
ceps, and  back  was  deter- 
mined by  the  number  of 
times  that  the  subject  could 
raise  his  weight  between 
the  parallel  bars  while  sup- 
porting himself  on  his 
hands.  The  number  of 
times  a  person,  while 
holding  on  to  the  sus- 
pended rings,  could  raise 
his  own  weight  by  con- 
tracting the  arms  was  the 
manner  of  testing  the  bi- 
ceps, chest,  and  upper 
back.  The  strength  of  the  chest  and  tri- 
ceps of  all  who  were  unable  to  lift  their 
own  weight  was  tested  by  means  of  a  dy- 
namometer constructed  for  the  purpose 
(see  Fig.  i).  The  strength  of  the  fore- 
arms and  hands  was  tested  by  a  liand-dyna- 
mometer  (see  Fig.  3).  The  capacity  of 
the  lungs  was  determined  by  the  number 
of  cubic  inches  of  air  the  individual  could 
blow  into  a  spirometer.  The  manometer 
was  used  to  test  the  strength  of  lung-tissue 
and  the  force  of  the  expiratory  muscles. 


Figure  C. 


The  Physical  Profiortions  of  the  Typical  Man 

In  order  to  form  some  idea  of  the  gen- 
eral strength  of  the  individual,  the  results 
of  the  several  tests  were  summed  up.  The 
amount  represented  the  total  strength  so  far 
as  determined.  I  should  add  that,  before 
summing  up  the  result  of  the  arm  or  chest 
tests,  the  number  of  times  that  a  person  had 
lifted  himself  either  way  was  multiplied 
into  a  tenth  of  his  weight,  the  object  be- 
ing to  credit  each  person  with  the  number 
of  foot-pounds  lifted,  rather  than  to  reckon 
the  number  of  times  the  body  was  raised, 
without  regard  to  its  weight.  A  tenth  of 
the  weight  was  decided  upon  in  order  to 
reduce  the  number  of  figures  that  would 
result  from  the  multiplication. 

To  add  interest  to  the  work,  the  girths 
of  the  head,  chest  (natural  and  inflated), 
waist,  thighs,  upper  and  forearms  —  these 
being  the  parts  tested  —  were  summed 
up.  The  difference  between  this  amount, 
which  was  taken  to  represent  the  potential 
strength,  and  the  amount  found  to  repre- 
sent the  actual  strength,  was  termed  the 
condition. 

In  tabulating  the  first  thousand  measure- 
ments, the  sum  of  the  figures  representing 
the  potential  strength  and  the  sum  of  the 
figures  representing  the  actual  strength 
were  found  to  correspond  very  closely  in 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

healthy  persons  who  had  received  no  pre- 
paratory training.  This  fact,  though  really 
an  accidental  discovery,  was  made  by  con- 
struction a  relative  standard  to  work  by. 
If  the  actual  strength  exceeded  the  poten- 
tial strength,  the  condition  was  marked 
plus  the  amount  of  the  excess.  If  the 
actual  strength  fell  short  of  the  potential 
strength,  the  condition  was  marked  minus 
the  amount  of  the  deficiency. 

In  order  to  ascertain  the  influence  of  the 
various  conditions  of  life  upon  the  growth 
and  development  of  the  individual,  answers 
to  the  following  questions  were  solicited  : 

Name  or  number. 

Class  and  department,  or  occupation. 

Age,         yrs.         ms.  Birthplace. 

Nationality  of  father,  mother. 

"  "  his  father,  her  father. 

"  "  his  mother,         her  mother. 

Occupation  of  father. 

If  father  is  dead,  of  what  did  he  die  ?  ' 

If  mother  is  dead,  of  what  did  she  die> 

Which  of  your  parents  do  you  most  resemble  ? 

What  hereditary  disease,  if  any,  is  there  in  your  family .? 

Is  your  general  health  good  ? 

Have  you  always  had  good  health  ? 

Check  (y/)  such  of  the  following  diseases  as  you  may 

have  had :  — 

Asthma,  Dizziness,  Gout,  Pleurisy,  Palpitation  of  the 
Heart,  Pneumonia,  Habitual  Constipation,  Bronchitis, 
Dyspepsia,  Rheumatism,  Shortness  of  Breath,  Headache, 
Varicose  Veins,  Spitting  of  Blood,  Chronic  Diarrhoea, 
Dysentery,  Neuralgia,  Jaundice,  Piles,  Liver  Complaint, 
Paralysis. 

What  injuries  have  you  received  ? 

What  surgical  operation  have  you  undergone  ? 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

It  frequently  happened  that  answers  to 
these  questions  would  account  for  some  pe- 
culiarity of  development  or  some  deficiency 
in  the  size  of  body  or  limbs,  or  for  ex- 
treme muscular  weakness,  that  could  not 
otherwise  be  explained.  Immediately  be- 
fore and  after  the  strength-tests  the  heart 
and  lungs  were  examined  by  auscultation 
and  percussions,  and  any  pecuHarities  noted. 
The  information  obtained  from  the  physi- 
cal examination  just  described,  in  connec- 
tion with  the  history  oi  the  individual  and 
the  many  facts  brought  out  by  personal 
observation,  served  as  a  basis  for  advice. 

At  the  time  the  system  I  am  now  dis- 
cussing was  inaugurated,  the  gymnasium 
was  wholly  inadequate  to  meet  the  de- 
mands of  at  least  two-thirds  of  the  pupils 
who  came  under  my  observation.  Most 
of  them  had  discovered  this  fact  for  them- 
selves, and  had  let  the  gymnasium  and  its 
apparatus  severely  alone.  The  tendency  to 
specialism  already  alluded  to  had  served  to 
make  the  gymnasium  distasteful  to  many 
who  wished  to  use  it,  but  who  had  neither 
the  ability  nor  inclination  to  perform  the 
feats  usually  practised  on  the  old-style  ap- 
paratus. In  order  to  make  the  gymna- 
sium serviceable  to  a  larger  portion  of  the 
community,  and  especially  to  those  most 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 


needing  its  advantages,  it  seemed  necessary 
that  a  new  system  of  apparatus  should  be 
introduced,  and  a  new  spirit  infused  into 
the  institution.  With  this  aim  in  view, 
I  devised  a  system  of  appHances  designed 
to  develop  the  different  parts  of  the  body, 
and  to  be  adjusted  to  the  strength  of  the 
strong  or  the  weakness  of  the  weak. 

In  introducing  these  mechanical  devices 
into  the  gymnasium,  I  made  a  radical  de- 
parture from  one  of  the  traditions  that  had 
governed  physical  education  in 
the  past.  The  idea  had  become 
thoroughly  established  in  the 
community,  that  in  order  to  be 
beneficial,  physical  exercise  must 
be  interesting.  Physiologists  and 
writers  on  education  have  given 
the  weight  of  their  testimony 
to  this  opinion,  and  it  is  quite 
difficult  to  convince  many 
persons  at  the  present  day  that 
the  value  of  exercise  is  not 
solely  dependent  upon 
its  being  made  pleasing 
and  attractive  in  itself. 

If  a  walk,  run,  game 
of  ball,  or  system  of 
gymnastic  training, 
does    not   accord   with  Figure  d. 


23 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

our  inclinations,  we  are  likely  to  enter  into 
it  with  less  spirit,  and  consequently  to  reap 
less  benefit.  But  let  it  be  understood  that 
exercise  itself  is  beneficial,  however  dis- 
agreeable or  distasteful.  If  the  effort  is 
made,  the  physiological  effects  of  exercise 
are  realized.  Old  tissue  is  broken  down 
and  new  tissue  demanded  to  take  its  place, 
and  in  answer  to  this  demand  the  vital 
functions  are  increased.  All  physical  ex- 
ercises, however  pleasant  at  first,  tend  to 
become  irksome  and  distasteful  when  pur- 
sued systematically  day  after  day ;  but  the 
very  energy  that  one  is  obliged  to  put  forth 
in  overcoming  this  distaste  is  a  wholesome 
discipline.  Having  recognized  the  fact 
that  physical  exercise  is  necessary,  and  that 
the  exercise  is  best  which  best  meets  one's 
individual  needs,  a  man  should  pursue  it 
with  all  the  energy  that  he  is  capable  of 
throwing  into  any  other  duty.  By  so  doing, 
the  training  of  the  will  is  added  to  the 
training  of  the  body,  and  the  lesson  learned 
in  abnegation  and  self-mastery  contributes 
the  most  important  elements  to  the  forma- 
tion of  character.  Add  to  these  attain- 
ments a  correct  method  of  working  and  a 
healthy  habit  of  living,  and  the  young  man 
will  have  had  the  best  kind  of  preparatory 
training  for  the  business  of  life. 

24 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

The  undergoing  of  present  hardship  for 
the  sake  of  future  gain  is  one  of  the  most 
encouraging  features  connected  with  ath- 
letic sports  and  games.  That  the  partici- 
pants may  be  in  the  best  physical  condition 
at  the  day  of  the  contest,  they  are  obliged 
to  undergo  a  long  and  arduous  course  of 
training,  denying  themselves  luxuries,  fore- 
going pleasures,  and  holding  themselves 
down  to  a  rigid  system  of  mechanical 
exercises  for  an  ultimate  object,  —  the 
winning  of  a  foot-race,  boat-race,  or  a  ball- 
game.  If  one  man  in  a  hundred  will  prac- 
tise self-denial,  and  undergo  hardship,  in 
order  to  win  a  prize  in  a  fleeting  pastime, 
is  it  not  an  insult  to  the  remaining  ninety- 
nine  to  assume  that  they  have  not  suffi- 
cient morale  to  make  a  similar  effort  in 
preparing  to  win  the  higher  prize  of  life  ? 

After  obtaining  the  measurements  of  a 
thousand  individuals,  ranging  from  sixteen 
to  thirty  years  of  age,  I  tabulated  them 
according  to  age,  and  sought  to  obtain  the 
average  height,  weight,  chest-girth,  etc., 
as  indicated  in  the  list  previously  described. 
The  averages  thus  obtained  have  been  used 
as  a  working  basis  up  to  the  present  time. 
Immediately  after  the  examination  of  the 
individual,  he  was  furnished  with  a  book 

25 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

or  card  in  which  his  measurements  at  the 
parts  specified  were  compared  with  those 
of  the  average  man  of  the  same  age.  If 
a  measurement  fell  below  the  average,  the 
fact  would  be  indicated  by  the  minus  sign 
following  it;  if  the  measurement  exceeded 
that  of  the  average,  it  would  be  shown  by 
the  plus  sign. 

The  interest  manifested  in  physical  ex- 
aminations by  the  public  at  large  during 
the  last  few  years,  and  the  adoption  of  my 
methods  and  standards  of  measurement  in 
several  institutions  of  learning,  have  ena- 
bled me  to  collect  sufficient  data  to  form  a 
more  reliable  basis  for  deductions  concern- 
ing the  human  figure,  male  and  female, 
and  to  offer  a  more  attractive  form  of  ex- 
pressing these  deductions. 

Every  one  who  has  attempted  to  draw 
any  conclusion  from  the  measurements  of 
the  body  must  have  realized  the  need  of 
some  guide  that  would  show  at  a  glance, 
not  only  the  relative  standing  of  one  indi- 
vidual as  compared  with  another,  but  also 
the  relation  of  every  part  of  the  individ- 
ual to  every  other  part.  Unless  these  facts 
are  known,  all  estimates  of  the  physical 
ability  or  capacity  of  a  man  are  simply 
matters  of  opinion.    .  One  person  may  be 

26 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  tJte  Typical  Man 


above  another  in  height,  and  below  him  in 
weight.  The  significance  of  the  fact  Hes 
in  the  degree  of  the  difference.  Then, 
again,  the  same  man  may  be  above  the 
normal  in  one  measurement,  and  below  the 
normal  in  another.  The  extent  of  the  va- 
riation is  the  desirable  thing  to  know.  In 
one  instance  this  variation  might  not  ex- 
ceed the  physiological  limits  ;  in  another 
instance  it  might  result  in  a  deformity. 
These  differences  are  but  vaguely  suggested 
when  expressed  in  figures ;  yet 
t  is  futile  to  tell  a  person  that 
he  is  above  or  below  the  aver- 
age without  indicating  the 
degree,  or  informing  him 
of  its  significance. 

The  object  of  the  chart 
(see  Charts  I.,  II.,  III.)  is 
to  meet  this  jdifficulty,  and 
to    furnish    the   youth   of 
both  sexes  with  a  laudable 
incentive  to  systematic  and 
judicious  physical  training,  by 
showing   them,   at  a   glance, 
their  relation  in  si^e^  strength^ 
symmetry^  and   development  to 
the   normal   standard,  as  de- 
duced from  the  measurements 
Figure  E.         of   ten  thousaud  individuals. 


27 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

ranging  from  seventeen  to  thirty  years  of 
age. 

The  reference  tables,  of  which  this 
chart  is  a  reduced  skeleton,  are  the  result 
of  seventeen  years'  observation.  The  de- 
ductions have  been  drawn  from  measure- 
ments taken  largely  from  the  student  class 
of  the  community. 

The  tables  for  females  have  been  made 
up  from  measurements  taken  by  trained 
assistants  at  the  principal  female  colleges. 

The  parts  at  which  the  observations 
were  made  are  indicated  by  the  list  at  the 
left  side  of  the  chart. 

The  perpendicular  lines  divide  into 
classes  all  of  the  measurements  for  each 
part  that  were  surpassed  or  unsurpassed  by 
given  percentages  of  the  persons  examined, 
as  shown  by  the  figures  at  the  top  of  the 
chart.  The  upper  number  at  the  top  of 
a  perpendicular  line  shows  the  per  cent 
that  at  each  part  surpassed  the  class  in- 
dicated by  that  line.  The  lower  number 
shows  the  per  cent  that  at  each  part  failed 
to  surpass  that  class.  The  small  per  cent 
that  exactly  represented  that  class  at  any 
part  —  varying  as  it  did  with  the  per  cent 
of  that  class  at  every  other  part,  and  with 
the  per  cent  of  every  other  class  at  every 
part — -is  not  separately  taken  into  account. 

28 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 


bsvc 

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10 

«o 

70 

60 

so" 

40 

3a 

20 

\o 

3 

Above 

.low 

5 

10 

20 

30 

40 

50 

60 

70 

40 

ID 

S5 

Belo<N 

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i. 

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_ 

_ 

.- 

-- 

- 

- 

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-- 

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'   *"«"? 

, 

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, 

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.- 

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-      Hipi 

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-     t.  " 

-     R.ln.tep 

. 

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-     L   -        ••       " 

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OePTH.Ch«.l 

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"      Abdomen        " 

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BREADTH.  Hewl 

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LENGIHRShixM  EUx  ' 

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HEARINO 

J-i 

J — I 

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— L 

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I 

__L 

-L 

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J L 

_i 

1 

Chart  II.,  flatted  from  figures  C,  D,  and  E. 
29 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

The  reference  tables  from  which  this 
chart  is  made  give  all  the  figures  repre- 
senting the  measurements  of  the  fifty-one 
classes  for  either  sex.  These  figures  are 
placed  where  the  perpendicular  lines  in- 
tersect the  lines  leading  from  the  parts 
measured. 

The  perpendicular  line  in  the  centre  of 
the  chart  is  the  normal  or  typical  line  ; 
i.  e.,  the  line  that  was  represented  at  each 
part  by  a  larger  per  cent  of  the  persons 
examined  than  was  any  other  line  at  any 
other  part. 

The  class  marked  "minimum"  and  the 
class  marked  "maximum"  were  each  rep- 
resented at  every  part  by  about  one-twen- 
tieth of  one  per  cent  of  all  the  persons 
examined. 

After  a  few  moments'  study,  it  will  read- 
ily be  seen  that  the  uses  of  the  chart  are 
numerous,  showing  the  relation  of  the  in- 
dividual to  the  normal  standard,  the  rela- 
tion which  every  part  of  the  individual 
bears  to  every  other  part,  and  suggesting 
many  other  comparisons  of  interest. 

That  the  unit  of  measurement  should 
be  as  small  as  possible,  owing  to  the  ten- 
dency of  many  observers  to  record  a  meas- 
urement at  the  nearest  whole  number,  the 
metric  system  was  adopted. 

30 


TJic  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

In  computing  the  normal  height,  weight, 
and  chest-girth,  I  used,  simply  for  com- 
parison with  and  in  verification  of  my  own 
deductions,  data  compiled  from  various 
sources,  representing  over  a  million  meas- 
urements of  each  of  these  parts. 

The  directions  for  the  use 
of  the  chart  are  very  simple  : 
To  find  the  standing  of  an  in- 
dividual in  relation  to  the 
total  number  examined, 
ascertain  which  one  of 
the  perpendicular  lines, 
at  its  junction  with  the 
horizontal  line,  is  inter- 
sected by  the  dotted  line 
indicating  his  standing. 
For  instance,  if  his  line, 
at  its  junction  with  the 
horizontal  line  leading 
from  the  weight,  inter- 
sect the  perpendicular  line 
immediately  under  the 
figure  20,  it  would,  indi- 
cate that  80  per  cent  of 
all  those  examined  sur- 
passed him  in  weight,  while  the  comple- 
ment of  this,  or  20  per  cent,  failed  to  sur- 
pass him. 

If,  however,  his  line,  where  it  intersects 

31 


Figure  F, 


UNIVERSITY 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

the  line  of  measurement,  fall  on  the  line 
at  the  right  or  left  of  one  of  the  num- 
bered perpendicular  lines,  add  or  subtract 
2i  per  cent,  unless  it  fall  outside  of  either 
the  figure  lo  or  90,  in  which  case  but  \\ 
per  cent  should  be  reckoned. 

As  a  rule,  all  the  measurements  of  a 
small  person  fall  to  the  left,  and  all  the 
measurements  of  a  large  person  fall  to  the 
right,  of  the  normal  line. 

If  strong  for  his  age,  weight,  height,  or 
development,  the  part  of  his  line  that  in- 
dicates the  strength  will  be  on  the  right  of 
the  part  that  indicates  the  age,  weight,  or 
measurement. 

Symmetry  will  be  determined  by  the  de- 
gree to  which  his  line  approaches  the  per- 
pendicular. 

Asymmetry,  by  the  extent  to  which  his 
line  departs  from  the  perpendicular. 

To  ascertain  his  development  as  compared 
with  others,  observe  the  intersection  of  his 
line  with  the  lines  of  muscle  measure- 
ments. 

His  development,  as  compared  with  his 
capacity  for  development,  will  be  shown 
by  the  difference  between  the  muscle  meas- 
urements and  the  bone  measurements  for 
corresponding  parts  ;  as  the  knee,  elbow, 
wrist,  etc. 

32 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

Figs.  A,  B,  represent  a  young  man  of 
English  descent,  twenty-three  years  of  age, 
weight,  149  pounds,  and  height  5  feet  6 
inches. 

Upon  referring  to  Chart  I.,*  where  his 
measurements  have  been  plotted,  the  rela- 
tive standing  of  the  young  man  as  com- 
pared with  the  total  number  examined  is 
readily  observed,  as  well  as  the  relation 
which  every  part  of  the  individual  bears 
to  every  other  part. 

His  line,  at  its  juncture  with  the  hori- 
zontal line  leading  from  the  age,  falls  to  the 
right  of  the  perpendicular  line  immediately 
under  the  figure  85.  This  indicates  that 
1 2^  per  cent  of  all  those  examined  sur- 
passed him  in  years,  while  the  comple- 
ment of  this,  or  874  per  cent,  failed  to 
surpass  him. 

The  weight  falls  in  the  82^  per  cent 
and  the  height  in  the  20  per  cent  class. 
The  height  of  knee  and  pubic  arch  falls 
to  the  left,  and  the  sitting  height  and 
height  of  sternum  fall  to  the  right  of  the 
line  indicating  the  full  stature.  This  dis- 
crepancy   indicates    that    his    diminutive 


*  This  chart  is  obviously  limited  in  its  application  to  those 
who  have  been  examined  according  to  the  system  of  measure- 
ments herein  described.  More  explicit  directions  will  be  fur- 
nished by  the  author  to  any  one  desiring  to  pursue  the  same 
method. 

33 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

Stature  is  due  to  the  shortness  of  the  lower 
extremities,  and  that  the  upper  part  of  the 
legs  is  too  short  for  the  lower  part. 

The  girth  of  head  is  above  the  85  per 
cent  line,  and  the  girth  of  the  neck  and 
chest  above  the  97!  per  cent  line. 

The  measurements  of  the  waist  and  hips 
fall  off  a  little  proportionally  from  those 
of  the  chest ;  but  it  will  be  observed  that 
all  of  the  girths  are  unusually  large  for  the 
height,  indicating  a  fine  muscular  develop- 
ment. 

The  depth  of  chest  and  abdomen,  and 
the  breadth  of  the  head,  neck,  waist,  and 
hips,  are  relatively  small ;  but  the  breadth 
of  the  shoulders  approaches  very  near  to 
the  maximum. 

The  length  of  the  upper  arm  is  a  trifle 
short,  as  shown  by  the  measurements  from 
the  shoulder  to  the  elbow.  The  forearm 
and  hand  are  also  below  the  normal  in 
length,  but  slightly  longer  in  proportion 
than  the  upper  arm.  The  left  forearm 
and  hand  are  half  a  centimetre  shorter  than 
the  right.  This  difference  is  made  appar- 
ent by  the  variation  in  the  points  denoting 
the  right  and  left  elbow-tips.  There  is 
also  a  discrepancy  in  the  length  of  the 
feet. 
.  His  horizontal  length  is  about  the  same 

34 


The  J^hysical  Proportions  of  ike  Typical  Man 


as  the  height ;  while  the  stretch  of  arms 
is  appreciably  greater,  reaching,  as  it  does, 
to  the  50  per  cent  line.  This  may  seem 
slightly  paradoxical,  as  the  length  of  the 
forearm  and  upper  arm  is  below  the  aver- 
age, but  the  increased  extension 
of  the  arms,  when  measured 
horizontally  from  finger- 
tip to  finger-tip,  is  due 
to  the  great  breadth  of 
the  shoulders.  The  ca- 
pacity and  strength  of 
lungs,  though  fairly  good, 
are  not  what  might  be 
expected  from  the  prom- 
inence of  the  chest  meas- 
urements. Referring  to 
the  accompanying  illus- 
trations, however  (Figs. 
A  and  B,  back  and  side 
we  find  that 


views 


Figure  G. 


the  large  chest-girth 

is     undoubtedly    due 

to    the    development 

of  the  chest-muscles, 

and  to  those  of  the  upper 

back,  while  the  region  below  the  nipples 

is  somewhat  narrow  and   contracted.      It 

will  also  be  observed  that  the  girth  of  the 

chest  (full)  is  proportionately  below  that  of 

35 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

the  cliest  in  repose.  This  indicates  that 
the  power  of  inflation  is  less  than  it  ought 
to  be. 

The  strength  of  the  back  accords  with 
the  measurements  of  the  waist,  and  that 
of  the  arms  and  chest  with  the  measure- 
ments of  these  parts ;  but  the  strength  of 
the  legs  is  somewhat  greater  than  we  should 
have  reason  to  look  for  from  the  develop- 
ment presented  at  the  thighs  and  knees. 

Upon  the  whole,  the  strength  is  in  ex- 
cess of  the  development,  and  the  condition 
is  favorable. 

The  weak  points  are  the  waist,  loins, 
and  abdomen. 

Figs.  C,  D,  E,  as  shown  in  Chart  II., 
represent  a  young  man  oi  a  diff^erent  type. 
He  is  of  Irish  descent,  aged  twenty-two 
years  six  months,  5  feet  4  inches  in  height, 
and  weighs  117  pounds. 

In  this  case  the  weight  and  height  are 
more  nearly  in  accord,  and  the  weight  is 
a  little  more  uniformly  distributed. 

The  striking  peculiarity  in  his  case  is  the 
difference  between  the  bone  measurements 
and  the  muscle  measurements  for  corre- 
sponding parts,  —  as  at  the  knee,  elbow, 
wrist,  etc.  Are  the  bones  proportionately 
very  small,  or  the  muscles  proportionately 
very  large }     From  a  comparison  of  the 

36 


The  Physical  rroportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

weight  and  height  it  will  be  seen  that  a 
large  per  cent  of  the  bone  measurements 
are  in  advance  of  those  of  the  same  class 
on  the  tables  to  which  this  young  man 
evidently  belongs.  We  must  conclude, 
therefore,  that  the  muscular  development 
is  in  excess  of  that  warranted  by  the  bony 
framework  ;  and  that  the  size  of  the  bones 
in  the  arms  and  legs  has  been  increased  to 
meet  the  demands  put  upon  them. 

When  we  compare  the  total  strength  as 
shown  by  the  chart  with  that  of  the  total 
development,  we  find  the  former  greatly 
in  excess.  The  sum  of  the  measurements 
would  merely  entitle  the  young  man  to  a 
place  in  the  30  per  cent  class,  while  the 
total  strength-test  would  entitle  him  to  a 
place  in  the  97  per  cent  class.  The  fall- 
ing off  in  the  strength  of  the  forearm  is 
accounted  for  by  an  impairment  of  the 
muscles  of  the  hand,  due  to  an  injury. 

In  summing  up  the  condition  of  this 
individual,  we  are  warranted  in  saying  that 
he  has  made  the  best  of  himself  in  point 
of  development.  Under  more  favorable 
circumstances  he  might  have  attained 
greater  stature  and  weight ;  but  his  ances- 
try and  nurture  prescribed  the  limit,  and 
no  amount  of  physical  training  at  this  late 
date  can  make  up  the  deficiency.     By  phys- 

37 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  'Py/>ical  Man 


ical  exercise  under  good  conditions  the  de- 
velopment of  the  muscles  has  been  lifted 
above  that  of  the  average  or  typical  man, 
and  the  strength  made  greatly  to  exceed  it. 
A  few  months'  special  training  might  bring 
the  measurement  of  the  thighs  to  the  nor- 
mal standard,  and  add  a  little  to  the  devel- 
opment of  other  parts  ;  but  it  would  add 
nothnig  to  the  health,  permanent  strength, 
or  longevity  of  the  individual. 

Figs.  F,  G,  H,  and  Chart  III.  represent 
an  individual  of  another  type  —  of  Ameri- 
can ancestry. 

His  age  is  thirty-three  years,  weight 
i6i  pounds,  and  height  5  feet  9.7  inches. 

Upon  referring  to  the  chart,  it  will  be 
noticed  that  the  most  remarkable  charac- 
teristic of  this  figure  is  its  approach  to 
perfect  symmetry  in  some  parts  and  its 
marked  divergence  from  it  in  others.  The 
weight,  which  is  a  trifle  heavy  for  the 
height,  is  very  uniformly  distributed,  the 
only  excess  being  in  the  region  of  the  chest, 
hips,  and  arms. 

The  relative  proportion  of  the  different 
heights  of  the  body  is  very  nearly  true. 
The  only  divergence  is  a  slight  falling  off 
in  the  sitting  height,  which  is  probably 
due  to  the  shortness  oi  the  neck.  The 
neck  and  chest  are  large  in  circumference. 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  ry/>ical  .^hr7i 

The  excess  in  the  chest-girth  may  be  ac- 
counted for  by  the  prominence  of  the 
shoulder-blades;  for  the  girth  of  the  waist 
is  consistent  with  other  measurements. 
The  girth  of  the  hips,  thighs,  and  knees 
indicates  the  nearest  approach  to  perfect 
symmetry  that  it  is  possible  to  attain. 

The   calves  are  a  trifle  small,  and   the 
insteps  somewhat  flat ;  but  for  these  slight 
deficiencies,   and   the   fact  that  the   upper 
and  lower  leg  are 
a  few  centimetres 
short,    the     lower 
extremities  of  this 
individual     would 
be  perfect  in  form. 

The  upper  and 
fore  arms  are  too 
large  for  the  body 
and  limbs,  and  a 
trifle  inconsistent 
in  themselves,  the 
wrist  being  rela- 
tively greater  in 
circumference 
than  the  elbows. 

The  falling 
off  in  the  depth 
of  the  chest  is 
very     marked,  ngure  h. 

39 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  J\Tan 

dropping,  as  it  does,  from  the  80  per  cent 
to  the  5  per  cent  class. 

This  is  decidedly  the  weak  point  in  this 
individual.  It  is  not  apparent  in  the  illus- 
trations, nor  would  it  be  detected  readily 
in  the  individual. 

It  is  attributable  to  an  inward  or  antero- 
posterior curve  of  the  spine,  between  the 
shoulder-blades,  and  a  depression  of  the 
lower  part  of  the  sternum,  or  breast-bone. 

There  has  been  considerable  compensa- 
tion, as  evidenced  by  the  size  of  the  chest 
and  the  lateral  prominence  of  the  ribs;  but 
it  will  be  observed  that  the  breathing  ca- 
pacity, although  higher  than  we  would 
expect  from  the  depth  of  the  chest,  is  still 
lower  than  it  should  be. 

The  depth  of  the  abdomen  falls  in  the 
80  per  cent  class,  as  do  nearly  all  the 
breadths  and  lengths,  the  only  exception 
being  the  trifling  deficiency  in  the  breadth 
of  head  and  the  slight  excess  in  the  breadth 
of  hips. 

In  most  persons  the  horizontal  length 
is  about  one-half  of  an  inch  greater  than 
the  height.  This  is  undoubtedly  due  to 
the  straightening  of  the  spine  and  the  re- 
laxing of  the  cartilages  while  in  the  hori- 
zontal position.  In  this  case  the  spine  is 
comparatively  straight,  so  that  little  differ- 

40 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

ence  is  shown  between  the  standing  and 
horizontal  length. 

The  strength-tests  in  this  case,  as  in  the 
others,  approach  near  to  the  maximum 
class. 

Upon  glancing  over  the  chart  as  a  whole, 
it  will  be  readily  seen  that  the  normal  po- 
sition of  this  individual  is  in  the  80  per 
cent  class.  Nearly  all  of  the  bone  meas- 
urements which  are  not  readily  changed  in 
adults  fall  on  the  80  per  cent  line,  while 
those  of  the  soft  parts  which  are  more  eas- 
ily affected  fall  above  this  line.  To  bring 
the  depth  of  the  chest  up  to  this  standard 
by  natural  processes,  although  impossible 
now,  would  have  been  a  simple  matter 
in  early  youth.  With  this  exception,  the 
individual  just  considered  could  so  develop 
himself  by  a  judicious  course  of  exercise  as 
to  approach  very  near  to  perfect  symmetry. 

In  this  case  the  dotted  line  on  the  chart, 
indicating  the  actual  and  relative  standing 
of  the  individual  at  all  the  parts  considered, 
would  be  perpendicular.  This  is  the  grand 
object  to  be  attained.  The  straight  line  is 
the  physical  sign  of  health  and  longevity, 
of  perfect  structure  and  harmony  of  func- 
tion, and  a  symmetrical  development  of 
the  whole  body. 

The  weight  must  not  be  too  great,  or 
41 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

the  stature  too  short  or  tall;  the  limbs  too 
massive  for  the  body,  or  the  body  too 
heavy  for  the  limbs ;  the  head  too  large 
or  too  small,  or  the  neck  too  short  or  too 
long  and  slender.  A  small,  well-made 
engine,  with  all  parts  adjusted,  will  do 
more  work  than  a  larger  one  with  parts 
loosely  constructed  and  a  great  dispropor- 
tion between  the  important  members.  So 
a  small  man,  compactly  built,  with  sym- 
metrical proportions  and  a  well-balanced 
organism,  can  accomplish  more  than  a 
larger  man  less  solidly  made,  with  all 
parts  wanting  in  symmetry  and  shapeliness. 
This  law  of  adaptation  and  harmonious 
adjustment  of  parts  prevails  throughout  the 
greater  portion  of  the  animal  kingdom. 

Among  the  civilized  portion  of  the 
human  race  it  is  controverted  by  social 
laws  that  tend  to  foster  an  inharmonious 
development.  The  division  of  labor,  for 
instance,  has  made  it  possible  for  a  man 
to  earn  a  livelihood  and  to  maintain  a 
footing  in  the  world  by  the  use  of  very 
few  muscles  and  faculties.  Under  such 
circumstances  the  large  head  and  massive 
shoulders  and  chest  are  not  necessarily 
accompanied  by  a  broad,  substantial  waist 
and  pelvis  and  well-developed  lower  ex- 
tremities.     It  is  true  that  the  waist  and 

42 


The  Physical  Pro/>ortiotis  of  the  Typical  Man 

legs  would  have  to  bear  the  burden  of  the 
weight  above  if  the  individual  engaged 
in  any  kind  of  physical  activity  in  an 
upright  position ;  but  a  person  with  his 
weight  so  unequally  distributed  would  find 
it  very  irksome  to  walk  or  run,  and  would 
naturally  avail  himself  of  all  the  modern 
conveniences  for  locomotion.  In  choosing 
his  life's  work,  the  chances  are  that  he 
would  gravitate  into  some  sedentary  occu- 
pation in  which  he  could  render  an  equiv- 
alent service  to  any  who  were  willing  to 
do  his  back  and  leg  work  for  him.  Had 
he  been  advised  to  enter  a  gymnasium  or 
join  an  athletic  club  for  the  purpose  of 
improving  his  physical  condition,  he  would 
probably  have  selected  that  exercise  from 
which  he  could  derive  the  greatest  amount 
of  pleasure  with  the  least  amount  of  effort. 
This  would  be  something  to  call  into  play 
the  muscles  that  were  already  strong.  The 
result  of  this  inharmonious  development 
would  be  a  further  modification  of  struc- 
ture, which  would  eventually  throw  the 
remaining  organisms  out  of  gear,  and 
constitute  a  greater  or  less  tendency  to 
disease. 

"  Cultivate  both  mind  and  body  along 
the  line  of  the  least  resistance." 

**  Study  yourselves;  and  most  of  all  note 

43 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 


(bovt 

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Chart  III.,  plotted  from  figures  F,  G,  and  H. 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

well  wherein  kind  nature  meant  you  to 
excel." 

These  are  the  sentiments  that  are  shaping 
the  tendencies  of  the  age,  and  moulding  our 
systems  of  mental  and  physical  education. 
In  neither  case  are  we  looking  for  improve- 
ment in  blood  and  tissue,  or  for  the  pro- 
motion of  organic  perfection.  The  leading 
object  is  to  achieve  immediate  success  in 
social  aims  and  distinctions ;  and  a  false 
method  is  taken  of  attaining  even  this. 
In  the  effort  the  welfare  of  both  body  and 
mind  is  frequently  jeopardized,  and  the 
foundation  for  vigorous  health  undermined. 

Nowhere  are  these  tendencies  to  degen- 
eration more  apparent  than  in  the  radical 
changes  that  take  place  in  the  physique 
through  impaired  nutrition.  These  changes 
can  readily  be  observed  by  comparing  the 
measurements  of  those  in  feeble  condi- 
tion with  the  typical  or  normal  standard 
as  shown  by  the  chart.  This  compari- 
son need  not  be  limited  to  individuals ;  for 
it  is  fully  as  applicable  to  schools,  clubs, 
classes,  or  communities. 

While  the  primary  object  of  the  chart  is 
to  offer  the  youth  of  the  land  an  incentive 
to  proper  physical  training,  and  to  place  in 
the  hands  of  instructors  a  key  to  the  strong 
and  weak  points  of  their  pupils,  the  author 

45 


The  Physical  Proportions  of  the  Typical  Man 

hopes,  as  the  data  from  different  sources 
accumulate,  to  show  the  anthropologist, 
the  naturalist,  the  physician,  the  surgeon, 
the  artist,  and  the  sculptor,  the  impor- 
tance of  the  tahles  in  the  pursuit  of  their 
respective  professions. 

To  parents,  in  guiding  the  growth  and 
development  of  their  children ;  to  teachers, 
in  watching  the  effects  of  study  and  local 
conditions  upon  the  health  of  their  pupils; 
to  superintendents  of  shops,  mills,  and 
factories  ;  and  to  those  who  have  charge 
of  prisons,  asylums,  and  penitentiaries,  a 
knowledge  of  the  typical  proportions  of 
the  body  are  indispensable  to  the  proper 
performance  o'l  their  duties.  To  the  soci- 
ologist and  statesman,  in  tracing  the  influ- 
ence of  occupation  and  of  town  and  city 
life  upon  the  health  and  strength  of  a 
people ;  to  the  civil-service  examiner,  in 
selecting  those  best  qualified  to  serve  in 
certain  capacities,  to  the  life-insurance  ex- 
aminer, in  deciding  what  risks  to  accept, 
etc.,  a  thorough  acquaintance  with  the 
physical  signs  of  health  and  approaching 
disease  is  of  the  greatest  importance. 

In  one  or  two  subsequent  papers  I  hope 
to  show  the  influence  of  systematic  train- 
ing upon  the  growth  and  development  of 
the  young,  to  point  out  by  means  of  the 

46 


The  Physical  Pro/'oytio/s  of  the  Typical  Man 

chart  the  physical  characteristics  of  distin- 
guished athletes,  to  show  the  influence  of 
the  higher  education  upon  the  physical 
development  of  women,  and  to  compare 
the  proportions  of  the  human  figure,  ac- 
cording to  the  canons  of  art,  with  those 
determined  by  anthropometry. 


47 


PHYSICAL    CHARACTERISTICS 
OF   THE    ATHLETE 

By  D.    4.  Sargent,   M.D. 


Figure  i.     {See  de script i07i  on  page  53.) 


N  spite  of  their  objectionable 
tendencies,  the  beneficial 
effects  of  athletic  sports 
upon  the  development  of 
the  physique  are  evident. 
The  nature  of  this  devel- 
opment is  governed  largely  by  the  consti- 
tutional bias  of  the  individual,  the  sport  in 

51 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  A  thlete 

which  he  is  engaged,  and  the  time  devoted 
to  it. 

There  is,  however,  a  general  devel- 
opment which  distinguishes  the  athletic 
from  the  non-athletic  class.  The  tracings 
given  in  Chart  I.*  (p.  54)  were  made  from 
the  measurements  of  twenty-three  hundred 
Harvard  students,  of  whom  seventeen  hun- 
dred had  never  practised  athletics  system- 
atically, while  six  hundred  had  been  active 
members  of  college  athletic  organizations 
from  one  to  four  years.  Many  oi  the  for- 
mer class,  however,  were  accustomed  to 
some  form  of  physical  exercise,  and  the 
athletic  career  of  many  in  the  second  class 
was  limited  to  a  single  season. 

It  may  be  said,  also,  that  men  are  often 
selected  for  athletics  on  account  of  their 
height  and  weight,  so  that  the  increased 
size  exhibited  in  such  cases  cannot  always 
be  attributed  to  the  practice  of  athletic 
exercises.  The  chances  are,  however,  that 
every  member  of  a  college  team  has  had 
more  or  less  previous  experience  in  ath- 
letics. 

Knowing,  as  we  do,  the  influence  of 
physical    activity    upon    the    development 

*  In  order  to  understand  the  construction  of  the  charts  used 
in  this  article,  see  preceding  chapter,  "  The  Physical  Proportions 
of  the  Typical  Man."  It  should  also  be  noted  that  the  records 
herein  cited  all  date  to  1887  only. 

52 


Physical  Characteristics  of  tJte  Athlete 


of  the  individual,  it  is  fair  to  presume  that 
a  Hke  influence  will  be  exerted  o^  the  de- 
velopment oi  a  class.  The  nature  of  this 
development  may  be  found  by  referring  to 
the  heavy  lines  on  the  chart.  Supposing 
the  fifty  per  cent  line  to  represent  the 
mean  measurements  of 
the  heavy  line  at 


class, 


Figure 


the    non-athletic 

the   right  of  the 

fifty  per  cent  line 

will  then  indicate 

the  mean  relative 


Figure  i.  —  B , 

Harvard,  '86;  age,  23  years, 
7  months  ;  weight,  140  lbs. ; 
height,  5  feet,  10.9  inches. 
Holds  nearly  all  the  ama- 
teur records  from  100  yards 
to  440  yards,  and  the  Har- 
vard record  for  \  mile : 
100  yards,  10    seconds'; 
no  yards,  11^  seconds; 
130  yards,  13    seconds; 
180  yards,  18    seconds  ; 
220  yards,  22    seconds  ; 
440  yards,  47I  seconds. 

Figure  2.  —  W , 

Harvard, '82;  age,  27  years; 
weight,  125.7  lbs.;  height, 
5  feet,  9.7  inches.     He 
holds  the  best  Ameri- 
can and  college  record 
for  1 00  yards  in  10 
seconds.     In  jus- 
tice to  Mr.  W 

it  should  be  said 
that  he  consented 
to  have  his  meas- 
urementsand  pho- 
tograph taken  at 
a  time  when  he 
was  not  in  run- 
ning condition. 


53 


I'liysical  Cluiracteristks  of  the  Athlete 


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Chart  I. ,  showing-  the  comparative  measurevients  of  the  athletic 
and  noil-athletic  classes. 


54 


PJiysical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete 

Standing  of  the  athletic  class.  On  the  other 
hand,  let  the  fifty  per  cent  line  represent 
the  mean  measurements  of  the  athletic 
class,  and  the  mean  measurements  of  the 
non-athletic  class  will  be  represented  by  the 
heavy  line  at  the  left  of  the  fifty  per  cent 
line.  The  chart  as  a  whole  seems  to  indi- 
cate that  the  first 
and  most  marked 
changes  pro- 
duced  upon  the 
physique  by  the 
practice  of  ath- 
letics are  shown 
in  the  weight, 
girth  of  chest, 
hips,  thighs,  and 
arms,  in  breadth 
of  shoulders,  and 
in  the  increased 
strength    of   all 

FlGI^RE     3.  —  B , 

Harvard,  '87  ;  age,  21 
years,  7  months  ;  -weight, 
141  lbs.  ;  height,  5  feet, 
1 1.9  inches.  Holds  the 
Intercollegiate  walking- 
records  from  one  mile 
to  seven  ;  has  practised 
walking  for  last  four 
years  ;  i  mile,  6  minutes, 
594  seconds;  2  miles,  15 
minutes,  lo^  seconds  ;  3 
miles,  24  minutes,  I4f 
seconds ;  7  miles,  58  min- 
Figure  3.  utes,  52  seconds. 


55 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  A  thlete 

parts  of  the  body,  while  the  girth  of  the 
neck,  waist,  and  calves,  the  depth  of  chest 
and  the  abdomen,  the  breadth  of  neck, 
waist,  and  hips,  seem  to  respond  more 
slowly.  The  total  height  is  slightly  in- 
creased, through  increase  in  length  of  the 
lower  extremities  ;  but  the  sitting  height, 
the  girth  of  head,  knees,  insteps,  wrist,  and 
the  length  of  upper  arm  and  foot,  are  at 
first  hardly  altered. 

In  the  athletic  class,  the  excess  in  devel- 
opment of  the  right  arm  tends  to  establish 
the  fact  that  our  popular  games  give  more 
employment  to  the  right  arm  than  to  the 
left.  The  great  showing  of  strength  in 
the  forearm  of  athletes  is  probably  due  to 
the  number  of  tennis-players,  boating  and 
base-ball  men  that  belonged  to  the  class 
measured.  The  slight  difference  between 
the  two  classes  in  the  girth  of  the  waist 
and  the  calf,  and  the  consequent  ten- 
dency of  the  lines  to  approach  at  these 
points,  may  be  easily  accounted  for.  In 
persons  who  engage  in  very  active  exer- 
cise, the  girth  of  the  waist  will  at  first 
diminish,  while  in  persons  of  less  active 
habit  the  size  o{  the  waist  increases.  The 
muscles  of  the  lower  leg  are  generally  well 
developed  in  the  non-athletic  class,  being 
the  principal  muscles  brought  into  play  in 

56 


Physical  Characteristics  oj  the  A  thlete 

walking.  The  depth  of  abdomen  and 
breadth  of  waist  would  not  be  likely  to  show 
a  marked  change,  for  reasons  already  given. 
The  depth  of  chest  and  breadth  of  hips, 
being  principally  bone  measurements,  are 
slow  to  respond  to  exercise.  The  similarity 
in  the  two  classes  between  the  mean  girth 


of  head,  knee,  in- 
step, and  wrist, 
and  the  length  of 
foot,  may  perhaps 
be  accounted  for 
by  the  smallness 
of  the  athletic  as 
compared  with 
the  non-athletic 
class. 


Figure    4.  —  W ,  Harvard  Law  School;  age,  22  years, 

4  months;  weight,  136  lbs.;  height,  5  feet,  10.3  inches.  Holds 
no  records,  but  has  won  the  quarter-mile  race  in  the  Intercollegi- 
ate sports  for  two  years,  and  he  is  a  fast  runner  for  all  distances 
between  one  hundred  and  four  hundred  and  forty  yards. 


57 


Physical  L'Juiracterisiics  of  the  Athlete 


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C^r/  //.,  plotted  front  Figs,   i,  2,  3,  awa?  4. 


58 


Physical  Clt,iraiti-ri>!  :>  ^  oj  ihc  Athlete 


The  most  signiticant  fact  in  connection 
with  this  diagram  is  that  it  shows,  in  cer- 
tain directions,  the  upHfting  of  a  class. 
The  data  collected  are  not  sufficient  to  lead 
to  any  satisfactory  conclusions  as  to  the 
trustworthiness  of  the  diagram  here  plot- 
ted. The  addition  of  a  few  more  rowing 
men,  or  the  subtraction  of  a  few  base-ball 
men,  or,  in  fact,  a  change  in  the  relative 
numbers  oi  any  of  the  so-called  special- 
ists, might  have  altered  the  result. 

The  improvement  of  the  physique  and 
strength  in  certain  directions  is  indicated 
by  the  strength-tests,  and  by  the  increase  in 
weight,  height,  chest-girth,  etc.  How  far 
this  development  can  be  attributed  to  ath- 
letics, and  how  far  to  gymnastic  training, 
remains  an  open  question,  as  work  on  the 
water  and  in  the  lield  is  supplemented  by 
a  few  months'  practice  in  the  gymnasium. 

What  the  gymnasium  is  doing  for  the 
strength  and  vigor  of  the  masses  in  some 
of  our  institutions  of  learning  may  be  in- 
ferred from  a  single  illustration  taken  from 
the  records  at  Harvard  University. 

In  the  year  1880,  seven  hundred  and 
seventy-six  men  were  physically  examined. 
The  strongest  man  out  of  this  number 
showed  in  strength  of  lungs,  back,  legs, 
chest,  and  arms,  as  indicated  on  the  chart, 

59 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  A  thlete 


a  grand  total  of  675.2.  At  the  close  of  the 
summer  term  of  the  present  year  (1887), 
the  highest  strength-test  recorded  was 
1272.8,  and  there  were  over  two  hundred 
men  in  college  whose  total  strength-test 
surpassed  the  highest  test  of  1880.  This 
general  gymnasium  work  is  therefore  re- 
ducing the  one-sided  development  once  so 
common  with  athletic  specialists. 

It  must  not  be  forgotten,  however,  that 
there  is  a  development  peculiar  to  the  run- 
ner, jumper,  wrestler,  oarsman,  gymnast, 
ball-player,  heavy-lifter,  etc. ;  and  any  one 
familiar  with  athletics  at  the  present  day 
can  easily  recognize  one  of  these  special- 
ists. The  same  training  that  produced 
those  matchless  specimens  of  human  de- 
velopment embodied  in  the  statues  of  the 
Gladiator,  the  Athlete,  Hercules,  Apollo, 
and  Mercury  of  old,  would  produce  the 
same  results  under  similar  circumstances 
at  the  present  time. 

With  every  kind  oi  physical  exercise, 
the  qualities  at  first  required  are  the  quali- 
ties at  length  developed.  Speed  and  en- 
durance are  required  of  the  runner,  and 
these  are  the  qualities  that  come  to  him 
by  practice.  In  a  like  manner,  skill  and 
activity  come  to  the  gymnast  and  ball- 
player ;   and  strength  and  stability  to  the 

60 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  A  thlete 

oarsman  and  weight-thrower.  Most  of 
these  qualities  are  accompanied  by  phys- 
ical characteristics.  If  it  were  not  for  the 
recognized    tendency  of   certain   exercises 

to    produce    certain 

. „ . results,  it  would   be 

impossible  to  pre- 
scribe special  work 
for  individual  cases. 
All  men,  however, 
who  practise  athlet- 
ics for  the  same 
length  of  time,  and 
under  similar  con- 
ditions, do  not  at- 
tain identical  results 
in  their  physical 
proportions,  or  the 
same  degree  of  suc- 
cess in  their  athletic 
achievements. 

In  order  to  illus- 
trate some  of  the  dis- 
tinguishing   features 
that     characterize 
Figure  I,  a.  the  development  of 

Figure  ^,  a  and  b.  —  D ,  Harvard,  '90;  age,  21   years; 

weight,  142^  lbs.  ;  height,  5  feet,  8i  inches.  Holds  the  3  mile 
Intercollegiate  record  of  16  minutes,  5I  seconds;  has  raced  but 
one  season,  but  has  practised  much  in  the  gymnasium,  and  ran 
long  distances  in  "  Hare  and  Hounds  "  races  before  coming  to 
college. 

61 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete 

successful  athletes,  I  have  selected  repre- 
sentative members  of  the  different  ath- 
letic organizations  in  the  universities  of 
Yale  and  Harvard,  a  few  of  whom  distin- 
guished themselves,  within  the  last  two 
years,  by  breaking  all  previous  college  rec- 
ords for  certain  events.  The  photographs 
of  these  men,  in  spite  of  their  dissimilarity, 
show  us  certain  characteristics  common  to 
certain  figures,  and  marked  peculiarities 
of  another  kind  will  accompany  others. 
Some  of  these  characteristics  are  not  readily 
detected  by  the  eye,  but  appear  distinctly 
in  the  charts  (see  Fig.  i,  p.  51  ;  Chart  II., 
p.  58).  Sixty  per  cent  of  the  ten  thousand 
examined  failed  to  surpass  this  young  man 
in  weight ;  while  ninety  per  cent  fell  short 
of  him  in  stature,  and  ninety-eight  and 
three-fourths  per  cent  in  height  of  knee. 
The  sitting  height  drops  back  to  the 
twenty-five  per  cent  class,  while  the  height 
of  the  pubic  arch,  which  gives  us  the 
length  of  the  thigh,  is  very  near  the 
ninety-seven  and  a  half  per  cent  line. 
The  position  of  the  sternum  would  indi- 
cate that  the  neck  and  head  were  a  little 
short,  thus  adding  something  to  the  rela- 
tive length  of  the  short  body.  In  glancing 
down  the  line,  it  will  be  observed  that  the 
girth  of  most  of  the  bone  measurements, 

62 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete 


and  the  breadth  of  the  head  and  hips,  are 
below  the  mean.  The  chest  is  deep  and 
full,  standing  almost  as  high  proportion- 
ally as  the  length  of  the  lower  limbs.  The 
waist,  though  small  for  the  weight  and 
height,  is  above  the  average.  The  calves 
are  large,  and  the  arms  well  devel- 

oped,  but  j^fl^  the  thighs  are  de- 
ficient in  \^iV  gii*th,   and    do 


\ 


not  compare 
favorably  with 
the  other  mus- 
cle measure- 
ments. The 
arms  and  feet 
are  long  for  the 
girth  of  the 
bones  and  mus- 
cles, but  are 
in  harmony 
with  the  length 
of  the  leg  and 
thigh.  The  ca- 
pacity of  the  lungs  is  very  good,  and  the 
strength  of  the  chest  and  arms  is  in  keep- 
ing with  the  measurements  of  these  parts. 

63 


\ 

\ 


Figure  5,  b.    {See  description,  page  61.) 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  A  thlete 


The  strength  of  the  back,  legs,  and  fore- 
arm are  deficient,  and  the  total  strength  is 
small  for  the  total  development. 

In  Jooking  at  the  chart  as  a  whole,  the 
striking  points  are  the  shortness  of  the 
body  as  compared  with  the  total  height, 
the  great  length  of  limbs,  the  large  and 
deep  chest,  the  well-developed  calves  and 
proportionally  small  thighs.  To  these 
points  might  be  added  the  smallness  of  the 
bones  as  measured  by  their  girth  and  di- 
ameter. A  person  familiar  with  zoology 
and  comparative  anatomy,  in  selecting  an 
animal  for  speed,  would  unhesitatingly 
choose  one  similarly  constituted;  for  many 
of  the  points  necessary  to  the  development 
of  speed  in  animals  are  equally  essential  in 
man.  These,  in  a  word,  are  the  qualities 
possessed  by  the  subject  of  the  chart  just 
described,  who,  though  not  a  professional 
runner,  has  made  the  fastest  time  for  cer- 
tain distances  that  has  as  yet  been  recorded. 
That  all  the  qualifications  possessed  by  the 
subject  must  necessarily  be  possessed  in  the 
same  degree  by  all  runners  who  would 
equal  his  performances  would  be  an  idle 
statement.  One  might  compensate  for 
great  length  of  limb  by  a  greater  devel- 
opment of  muscle,  or  for  want  of  chest- 
capacity    by    a    large    supply    of   nervous 

64 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete 

energy,  etc.      We  feel  prepared,  however, 

to  maintain 
that  relatively 
long  limbs 
with  a  short 
body,  full 
chest,  and 
small  bones, 
will  charac- 
terize the  typ- 
ical short-dis- 
tance runner 
wherever  he 
may  be  found. 
Short  races 
(i  oo,  220, 
and  440  yds.) 
are  very  often 
won  by  a  few 
inches,andthe 
value  of  an 
inch  or  two  in 
a    runner's 

stride  is  of  the  greatest  importance ;   for, 

other  qualifications  being  equal,  this  man 

is  bound  to  be  first  at  the  goal. 

The  small  girth  of  the  legs  of  runners 


Figiire  6,  a. 


Figure  6,  a  and  b.  —  H ,  Yale,  '90;  age,   18  years,  10 

months;  weight,  150  lbs.;  height,  5  feet,  7.7  inches.  Holds  the 
Intercollegiate  record  for  i  mile  in  4  minutes,  36I  seconds,  and 
the  College  record  for  two  miles  in  10  minutes,  7  seconds. 

65 


Physical  Ciiaracteristics  of  the  Athlete 

is  often  mystifying.  From  the  girth  of  a 
muscle  we  get  a  correct  idea  of  its  volume 
or  transverse  diameters,  but  learn  little  of 
its  length  and  the  extent  of  its  contractile 
fibres.  Whereas,  it  is  the  length  of  the 
muscle,  and  not  the  thickness,  that  is  of  sig- 
nificance to  short- 
distance  runners. 
Given  the  physio- 
logical fact  that  a 
muscle  can  contract 
about  one-third  of 
its  length,  it  will 
readily  be  seen  that 
the  longer  the  mus- 
cle the  greater  will 
be  the  movement 
of  the  part  to  which 
it  is  attached.  To 
the  runner  the  de- 
sired movement  is 
in  the  elevation  of 
the  thigh  and  the 
extension  and  flex- 
ion of  the  leg  and 
foot.  An  instan- 
taneous photograph 
of  sprint-runners 
shows  that  the  range 
in  the  movement  of  the  limbs  is  very  ex- 

66 


Figure  6,  l>. 
{See  description  on  preceding  page.) 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete 

tensive  —  the  stride  of  a  fast  walker  being 
from  four  to  six  feet,  and  that  of  a  fast 
runner  from  six  to  eight  feet.  If  the 
stature  is  short,  it  is  necessary  for  the  run- 
ner to  get  a  greater  elevation  from  the 
ground  at  each  step  in  order  to  main- 
tain a  long  stride.  When  this  is  done  a 
relatively  long  lower  leg  is  of  the  great- 
est advantage.  This  fact  is  admirably 
brought  out  in  the  case  of  Myers,  the  pro- 
fessional runner.  With  a  height  of  5  feet 
j\  inches,  which  is  a  little  below  the 
mean,  or  fifty  per  cent  class,  he  has  a 
length  of  lower  leg  which  corresponds  to 
a  man  over  5  feet  10  inches  in  height,  a 
length  of  thigh  usually  found  in  men  of  5 
feet  9  inches,  while  the  sitting  height  is 
the  same  as  that  which  makes  up  the  stat- 
ure of  men  of  5  feet  4  inches. 

^  Figs.  2  and  4  (pp.  53,  57),  Chart  II., 
give  the  physical  proportions  of  two  other 
runners  noted  for  their  speed.  Fig.  3  (p. 
55),  with  the  same  chart,  represents  a 
walker  of  some  prominence.  Many  of  the 
characteristics  that  distinguish  the  short- 
distance  runner  are  apparent  in  this  case, 
but  it  is  difficult  to  affirm  that  they  would 
be  found  in  other  walkers,  as  there  are 
not  sufficient  data  at  hand  to  establish  any 
satisfactory  conclusions. 

6^ 


Physical  Characteristics  of  ilie  A  thlete 


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Ci^ar/  ///.,  plotted  from  Figs.  5  ««</  6. 


68 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete 

In  Figs.  5,  ^,  b^  and  6,  ^,  /^,  (pp.  61-66), 
Chart  III.  (p.  68),  you  will  see  runners 
of  another  type.  In  neither  of  these  cases 
do  we  find  so  great  a  relative  distance  be- 
tween the  height  standing  and  sitting  as 
marked  the  individualsjust  considered.  In 
both  cases  the  sitting  height  is  proportion- 
ally short,  and  in  one  case  both  the  leg  and 
thigh  are  long  for  the  length  of  the  body. 
In  the  other  case,  however,  the  thigh  is 
long  and  the  leg  is  short  for  the  sitting 
height.  It  will  be  noticed  that  in  both 
figures,  as  shown  by  the  chart,  the  thigh 
is  long  for  the  leg.  The  chest  and  waist 
measurements  are  large  when  compared 
with  other  parts  of  the  body.  But  the 
striking  characteristic  in  both  cases  is 
the  large  girth  measurement  taken  below 
the  chest-muscles  immediately  over  the 
ninth  rib.  Unfortunately  this  measure- 
ment is  not  shown  in  the  chart,  but  the 
expansion  in  that  region  is  apparent  in 
both  photographs.  In  the  Harvard  man 
(Fig.  5)  there  is  a  greater  development  of 
the  chest-muscles ;  while  the  Yale  man 
(Fig.  6)  has  a  larger  chest-girth,  though 
the  lower  border  of  the  pectorals  is  hardly 
discernible. 

The  Harvard  man  has  broad  shoulders 
and  large  arms,  with  narrow  hips  and  small 

69 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete 


^%  >T   '  '"  '  "  v-^T*---' 


thighs;  while  the 
Yale  man  has 
narrow  shoulders 
and  small  arms, 
with  broad  hips 
and  large  thighs. 
The  Harvard 
man  has  a  very 
wide  chest,  with 
great  muscular 
strength  and  good  lung-capacity;  while  the 
Yale  man  has  a  very  deep  chest,  with  less 
muscular  strength,  but  greater  lung-power. 
As  these  men  are  noted  in  their  respective 
institutions  as  great-distance  runners,  we 
ought  to  find  some  characteristics  com- 
mon to  both.  All  that  remains,  however, 
is  the  length  of  body  and  thighs  and  the 
great  girth  of  chest  and  the  region  just 
above  the  ninth  rib.  To  these  qualifica- 
tions   may   be   added   the   splendid   heart 

70 


Figure  7. 


riiysical  CJuiracteristics  of  the  Athlete 


and  lung  power  that  usually  accompanies 
this  peculiar  formation  of  the  body.  With- 
out this  power,  great  muscular  strength  in 
body  or  limbs  cannot  be  depended  upon 
for  long-continued  exertions.  With  a  good 
respiratory  and  circulatory  apparatus,  an 
immense  amount  of  work  can  be  accom- 
plished by  comparatively  small  muscles. 
The  essential  requisites  of  a  long-dis- 
tance runner,  then,  are  a  strong  heart  and 
capacious  lungs  in  a  broad,  deep,  and  mo- 
bile chest.  The  reason  for  this  will  be 
apparent  to  those  who  understand  the  phys- 
iology of  exercise.  To  sustain  long-contin- 
ued exertion,  latent  energy  in  the  muscles 
used  is  necessary,  and  also  a  ready  means 
of  supplying  these  muscles  with  an  in- 
creased amount  of  oxygen  while  in  action, 
and  of  carrying  away  the  carbonic  acid 
that  results  from  the  combustion  in  the 
tissues.  Hence  the  necessity  of  breathing 
faster  while  running  than  while  walking  ; 
and  unless  this  exchange  of  gases  can  be 
carried  on  with  sufficient  rapidity,  and  in 
sufficient  quantities  to  meet  the  demands 
of  the  organism  under  these  trying  cir- 
cumstances, there  soon  comes  an  end  to 
further  muscular  activity,  though  the  mus- 
cles themselves  may  be  far  from  exhaus- 
tion. 

71 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete 

Figs.  7  and  8,  a^  b  (pages  70—73),  and 
Chart  IV.  (page  74),  represent  two  young 
men  whose  peculiar  development  character- 
izes another  branch 
of  athletics.  Fig.  7 
has  the  college  rec- 
ord as  a  hurdle- 
jumper.  His  height 
falls  in  the  eighty 
per  cent  class,  his 
height  of  knee  in 
the  forty  per  cent 
class,  his  sitting 
height  in  the  sev- 
enty per  cent,  and 
his  pubic  arch  in  the 
eighty-seven  and  a 
half  per  cent  class. 
When  it  is  known 
that  this  man  clears 
his  hurdles  in  regu- 
lar strides,  "  buck- 
ing "  them,  as  it  is 
termed,  the   advan- 

,      tage    of   the    short 

Figured, a,  Icg,  loug  thigh,  aud 


Figure  8,  a  and  h.  —  S ,  Yale,  '89;   age,   19   years,  i 

month;  weight,  138  lbs.;  height,  5  feet,  8.5  inches.  Holds  the 
Intercollegiate  record  for  broad-jumping,  21  feet,  72  inches;  and 
the  Yale  record  for  pole-vaulting,  10  feet,  3^  inches;  and  5  feet, 
6|  inches  for  the  running  high  jump. 


72 


Physical  CJiaracteristks  of  the  A  tfileie 


comparatively  short  body  is  mani 
fest.  The  chest  is  small, 
and  the  girth  of  the  chest 
in  repose  is  proportionally 
larger  than  the  girth  of  the 
chest  when  inflated.  This 
is  due  to  the  fact  that  in 
most  men  the  difference 
between  the  natural  and 
inflated  chest  is  due  in 
part  to  the  muscular  de- 
velopment, so  admirably 
exhibited  in  Fig.  8,  a^  b. 
In  Fig.  7,  Chart  IV., 
the  breathing  capacity 
reaches  the  ninety  per  ct. 
class.  Here  the  pectoral 
muscles  show  a  compara- 
tively slight  develop- 
ment ;  but  the  breathing 
is  largely  abdominal,  and 
the  broad  waist  and  deep 
chest  indicate  consider- 
able mobility  in  the  chest 
and  abdominal  walls.  The  gluteal  mus- 
cles about  the  hips  are  well  developed,  as 
are  also  the  muscles  of  the  thigh  and  leg. 
The  development  of  the  arms  and  shoul- 
ders is  not  so  favorable.  The  difference 
in  favor  of  the  right  side  of  the  body  is 

73 


Figure  8,  b. 
{See  description,  page  72.) 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  A  thlete 


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C/iart  IV.,  plotted  front  Figs,  7  and  8. 


74 


Physical  CJtaracteristics  of  the  Athlete 

probably  due  to  the  take  off  (start)  of  the 
jump  being  from  the  right  leg.  The 
outlines  of  the  muscles  in  this  case  are 
remarkably  well  defined,  indicating  a  fine 
condition. 

In  Fig.  8,  a^  b,  Chart  IV.,  the  same  pe- 
culiarity in  the  relative  length  of  body,  legs, 
and  thighs  is  not  so  well  marked.  The 
bony  framework  in  this  case  is  consider- 
ably smaller,  and  the  muscles  are  propor- 
tionally larger.  Here  the  ability  to  excel 
in  pole-vaulting  rather  than  in  long  jump- 
ing is  apparent.  The  peculiar  development 
of  the  arms,  chest,  and  shoulders  is  charac- 
teristic of  the  gymnast.  The  shortness  of 
the  upper  and  forearm  affords  an  excellent 
leverage  for  the  muscles  attached  to  these 
bones,  and  this  young  man  could  easily  ex- 
cel on  the  parallel  bars,  horizontal  bar,  or 
rings.  For  a  similar  reason  the  intercol- 
legiate record  for  pole-vaulting  is  within 
his  grasp.  The  development  above  the 
hips  may  enable  him  to  get  a  lift  or  ele- 
vation from  the  ground  which  he  cannot 
obtain  in  any  other  way.  This  advan- 
tage, coupled  with  the  relatively  long  and 
muscular  thigh,  the  ability  to  run  short 
distances,  and  to  concentrate  the  nervous 
energy  of  the  body  into  single  efforts,  gives 
the  power  needed. 

75 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  A  thlete 

How  little  this  ability  to  make  violent 
spasmodic  efforts  contributes  to  one's  last- 
ing or  staying  power  may  be  inferred  from 
a  glance  at  the  lung-capacity.  Here  depth 
of  chest  is  to  be  attributed  largely  to 
muscular  development,  and  the  strength 
of  lungs  to  the  power  of  exhaling  with  a 
quick,  explosive  effort.  Contrast  the  form 
of  the  chest  and  waist  in  this  case  (Fig.  8) 
with  that  of  the  long-distance  runner  from 
Yale  (Fig.  6). 

In  connection  with  jumping,  the  meas- 
urements of  W.  B.  Page,  who  recently  rep- 
resented this  country  in  athletic  contests  in 
England,  will  be  interesting.  Page  has  a 
record  of  6  feet  3I  inches  for  high  jump- 
ing. Considering  his  height  (5  feet  6.9 
inches),  this  performance  is  something  phe- 
nomenal. We  find  his  weight  on  the  fifty- 
five  per  cent  line,  his  height  on  the  forty 
per  cent,  knee-height  on  the  twenty  per 
cent,  sitting  height  just  above  the  five  per 
cent,  pubic  arch  on  the  fifteen  per  cent, 
and  height  of  sternum  on  the  fifty-five  per 
cent  line.  Although  very  short  compared 
with  the  sitting  height,  the  body  is  long 
compared  with  the  stature,  as  evidenced  by 
the  high  position  of  the  sternum.  This 
being  proportionally  several  points  above 
the  total  height  on  the  chart,  it  would  in- 

76 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  A  thtete 


dicate  a  rel- 
atively short 
neck.  It  will 
be  seen  that 
the  jumper's 
characteris- 
tics are  want- 
ing here  in 
the  relatively 
long  thigh 
and  short 
leg,  though 
both  are  pro- 
portionally 
long  for  the 
body.  When  we  come  to  consider  the 
other  measurements,  this  apparent  disad- 
vantage is  to  a  certain  extent  accounted 
for.      All  the  bone  measurements  are  very 

Figure  9.  —  B ,  Harvard,  '87  ;  age,  22  years,  3  months; 

weight,  172  lbs. ;  height,  5  feet,  9.3  inches.  Pulled  the  past  three 
years  on  the  Harvard  University  crew;  played  centre-rush  in 
the  '86  Harvard  foot-ball  eleven,  and  has  had  at  least  five  years 
of  exercise  as  a  rowing  man  and  foot-ball  player. 


Figure  9. 


77 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  A  thlete 

small,  and  the  muscle  measurements  ex- 
ceedingly large,  the  girth  of  head  falling 
on  the  five  per  cent  line,  while  the  girth 
of  chest  is  on  the  ninety  per  cent  line. 
The  girth  of  the  knee  falls  on  the  thirty 
per  cent  line,  the  girth  of  elbow  on  the 
twenty,  and  the  girth  of  the  thigh,  calf, 
arm,  and  forearm  near  the  eighty  per  cent 
line.  If  the  measurements  as  plotted  are 
correct,  this  man  owes  his  success  in  jump- 
ing rather  to  his  light,  bony  framework, 
short  trunk,  and  superb  muscular  develop- 
ment than  to  the  relative  strength  of  limb 
that  we  find  in  many  jumpers.  In  a  per- 
son so  constituted  nearly  every  muscle  in 
the  body  contributes  something  to  the  ef- 
fort in  jumping. 

Figs.  9,  10,  and  \\^  a^b  (pages  77—81), 
Chart  V.  (page  82),  introduce  us  to  men 
prominent  in  another  branch  of  athlet- 
ics. In  each  case  the  weight  falls  near 
the  ninety-five  per  cent  class,  though  the 
height  varies  considerably.  In  all  of  the 
tracings,  however,  it  will  be  noticed  that 
the  relative  position  occupied  by  the  body 
and  limbs  on  the  chart  has  changed.  In 
the  figures  previously  considered,  length 
of  limb  predominated ;  here  the  body,  as 
shown  by  the  sitting  height,  is  longer  pro- 
portionally than  either  the  arms  or  legs. 

78 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete 

In  one  case  the  height  of  knee  is  relatively 
less  than  the  length  of  thigh,  as  shown  by 
the  height  of  the  pubic  arch  ;  in  the  other 
cases  the  length  of  the  lower  leg  is  rela- 
tively in  excess  of  the  upper.  Here  all 
the   bone   and    muscle   measurements   are 


Figure  lo. 

P'iGURE   lo.  —  W ,  Yale,  '89;  age,  23  years,  4  months; 

weight,  167  lbs. ;  height,  5  feet,  8.9  inches.  Played  right  guard 
on  Yale's  foot-ball  eleven  for  '87,  and  rowed  on  the  Yale  Uni- 
versity crew  for  two  years. 

79 


Physical  Characteristics  of  tJie  A  thlete 

large  and  massive,  the  girth  of  head  in 
one  case  being  above  the  ninety-five,  and 
in  another  at  the  eighty-five  per  cent  class, 

while   the    girth 
of  the  bones  of 
the  legs  and  arms 
are  nearly  in  the 
same  class  as  the 
muscles  that  act 
upon  them. 
In  each 
case 
t  h  e 
girth 
of    the     chest 
reaches  the  nine- 
ty-seven and  one- 
half  per    cent 
class,  and  in  two 
cases    the    depth 
of  the  chest  cor- 
responds.    In  all 
there  is   a  slight 
falling  off  in  the 
girth     of    the 
the  fact  that  the 
greater  number  of  those  who  make  up  the 

Figure  i  i,  <?  and  h.  —  G ,  Yale  ;  age,  19  years,  4  months  ; 

weight,  164  lbs.;  height,  5  feet,  6.9  inches.  Played  in  the  rush- 
line  of  Yale's  foot-ball  team,  and  has  rowed  two  years  on  the 
University  crew. 

80 


Fig7ire  11,  a. 

waist.      This  is  due  to 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  A  thiete 

measurements  of  the  classes  in  this  part 
of  the  chart  owe  their  extensive  girth 
more  to  fat  than  to  muscle.  In  com- 
parison with  the  athletic  class  the  falling 
off  is  not  so  perceptible ;  and  it  will  be 
noticed  in  these  cases  that  the  breadth  of 
waist  is  larger  proportionally  than  the 
depth.  In  two  of  this  group  the  arms 
are  relatively  short, 
and  in  each  of  the 
group  the  upper 
arm  is  proportion- 
ally shorter  than 
the  forearm . 
The  lung- 
capacity  in 
one  case  is 
very  good, 
reaching  the 
ninety-five  per 
cent  class;  but  in 
the  other  cases, 
though  above  the 
mean,  it  is  not 
large  enough  to 
support  the  fine 
muscular  devel- 
opment repre- 
sented. In  Fig. 
11,^,  and  b,  the 


Figure  ii,  b. 
{See  description.  Page 


80.) 


81 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  A  thlete 


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82 


Physical  CJtaracteristics  of  the  Athlete 


Figs.  12  and  13.     {See  description,  page  85.) 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete 

muscle  measurements  are  large  for  tne  age, 
and  consequently  threaten  to  exceed  the 
vital  resources.  The  showing  of  muscular 
strength,  so  far  as  the  tests  could  he  taken, 
is  excellent. 

The  strikinor  characteristics  of  the  three 
figures  are  the  long  hody,  short  thigh, 
large  bones,  full  chest,  short  upper  arm, 
good  lung-capacity,  and  fine  muscular  de- 
velopment throughout  the  whole  physique. 
What  better  illustration  could  be  furnished 
of  the  perfect  harmony  between  the  form 
of  the  muscles  and  the  character  of  their 
functions  ?  Here  we  find  the  large  trans- 
verse development  of  arms  and  thighs,  in- 
dicating great  strength  and  short  range  of 
action  ;  and  the  expansive  chest  and  long 
body,  indicating  great  vital  power  and  ex- 
tensive range  of  muscle-movement. 

Let  us  consider,  briefly,  the  branches  of 
athletics  which  these  three  men  represent, 
and  see  the  connection  between  their  pe- 
culiar development  and  the  sports  they  are 

Figure  12.  —  G ,  Harvard,  '88;  age,  22  years,  10  months; 

weight,  169  lbs. ;  height,  5  feet,  7.7  inches.  Has  the  Harvard  leg 
and  back  lift  records  of  520  kilos  (i  146.6  pounds)  for  the  legs, 
and  370  kilos  (815.8  pounds)  for  the  back;  he  is  a  hammer- 
thrower  and  broad-jumper,  and  has  had  four  years'  general  exer- 
cise in  gymnasium  and  ^eld  sports  ;  is  third  strongest  man  at 
Harvard,  having  a  total  strength  record  of  1 139.7. 

Figure  13.  —  H ,  Harvard,  '88;  age,  19  years,  10  months; 

weight,  150  lbs. ;  height,  5  feet,  4.3  inches.  Is  the  type  of  a  mid- 
dle-weight wrestler,  had  three  years'  practice  in  general  athletics, 
has  a  total  strength  of  1060.3. 

85 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete 


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Chart  VI.,  plotted  from  Figs.  12  and  13. 


86 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete 

familiar  with.  Each  has  played  in  the 
rush-line  of  a  foot-ball  team,  and  has  been 
a  member  of  a  university  boat-crew.  Of 
all  athletic  sports,  foot-ball  is  the  best  game 
to  test  a  man  physically.  In  the  pushing 
and  hauling,  the  jostling,  trampling  strug- 
gle for  supremacy,  few  muscles  of  the  body 
are  inactive.  The  legs  are  almost  con- 
stantly in  motion,  and  the  arms,  chest,  ab- 
domen, and  back  get  their  share  of  activity ; 
the  lameness  and  soreness  in  these  regions 
of  the  body  after  a  fierce  contest  is  due  as 
often  to  great  muscular  effort  as  to  collision 
with  opposing  rushers.  In  spite  of  the 
accidents  attending  this  game,  as  at  present 
played,  no  sport  affords  better  opportunity 
for  vigorous  training.  Though  rowing 
contributes  largely  to  the  development  of 
the  back  and  legs,  and  slightly  to  the  arms 
and  chest,  to  the  gymnasium  and  foot-ball 
training  we  must  attribute  much  of  the 
superb  muscular  development  of  the  men 
just  considered. 

In  rowing,  the  back  takes  the  greatest 
portion  of  the  strain,  unless  the  friction 
of  the  seat  is  excessive,  in  which  case  a 
double  duty  is  imposed  upon  the  flexors  of 
the  legs.  A  long  stroke  being  desirable, 
the  advantage  of  a  long  body,  if  sufficiently 
broad  and  deep  to  furnish  extensive  attach- 

37 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete 


ments  for  the  rowing  muscles,  becomes 
apparent,  while  the  short  thigh  and  upper 
arm  give  power  to   the  muscles  that  are 

working  these 
shortened  levers 
from  the  body. 
It  is  only  when 
the  stroke  is  taken 
principally  by  the 
arms  or  legs  that 
the  great  length 
of  thigh  and  up- 
per arm,  as  com- 
pared with  the 
lower  leg  and 
forearm,  is  of  ser- 
vice ;  when  other- 
wise, a  greater 
reach  is  obtained, 
without  losing 
any  mechanical 
advantage.  These 
facts  are  better  il- 
lustrated in  Han- 
Ian,  the  profes- 
Figure  lA-  sional     oarsman, 

Figure   14.  —  B ,  Harvard  Law  School;  age,  22  years, 

6  months;  weight,  166  lbs.  ;  height,  5  feet,  8.1  inches.  One  of 
Harvard's  pitchers  on  the  'Varsity  nine  for  '87,  and  half-back  on 
the  '86  'Varsity  foot-ball  eleven  ;  he  is  second  strongest  man  at 
Harvard,  with  a  record  of  1141.9  for  total  strength,  and  has  had 
six  years'  training  in  college  athletics. 

88 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  A  thlete 

than  in  the  men  we  are  now  consider- 
ing. His  total  height  entitles  him  to  a 
place  in  the  sixty-five  per  cent  class, 
and  his  sitting  height  in  the  ninety 
per  cent  class,  while  the  height 
of  the  knee 
remains  with 
the  thirty, 
and  the  pubic 
arch  with  the 
t  w  e  n  t  y-fi  v  e 
per  cent  class, 
the  most  sur- 
prising differ- 
ence being  in 
the  relative 
length  of  the 
upper  arm  and 
the  forearm. 
Eighty  per 
cent  of  all 
those  exam- 
ined surpassed 
this  man  in 
length  of  up- 
per arm,  and 

Figure  15, «  and 

b.—  V ,  Harvard, 

'87  ;  age,  22  years  ; 
weight,  1644  lbs. ;  height,  5  feet,  10.5  inches.  Captain  of  '87  'Var- 
sity Lacrosse  team,  and  full-back  of  'Varsity  foot-ball  eleven  for 
'86  ;  has  had,  at  least,  four  years  of  athletic  training. 

89 


Figure  15, 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  A  thlete 

only  twenty-five  per  cent  surpassed  him 
in  length  of  forearm.  In  view  of  Han- 
lan's  style  of  rowing,  these  measurements 
are  suggestive. 

Large  bones,  which  usually  accompany 
large  muscles,  may  result  from  slow,  heavy 
work,  and  are  indispensable  to  him  who 
handles  great  weights.  If  the  bones  have 
large,  prominent  processes  for  the  attach- 
ment of  muscles,  or  the  muscles  have  short 
tendons  and  long  insertions,  great  strength 
is  the  usual  result. 

Perhaps  no  one  thing  is  more  important 
to  a  successful  oarsman  than  good  lung- 
capacity.  In  order  to  relieve  the  heart 
and  lungs  of  the  embarrassment  at  first  ac- 
companying severe  exertion,  it  is  necessary 
to  enlarge  the  chest  and  increase  its  mobil- 
ity, especially  in  the  region  of  the  eighth, 
ninth,  and  tenth  ribs.  This  can  be  ac- 
complished by  the  use  of  light  chest- 
weights,  dumb-bells,  and  running  exercises. 
I  am  prepared  to  maintain,  also,  that  row- 
ing, with  the  use  of  the  sliding-seat,  is  one 
of  the  best  exercises  for  enlarging  the 
chest,  and  I  believe  that  conclusions  of 
Maclaren  and  others  to  the  contrary  were 
formed  before  the  introduction  of  the  slid- 
ing-seat, as  the  evidence  is  indisputable 
that  the  girth  of  the  chest  is  greatly  in- 

90 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete 

creased  by  rowing.  The  use  of  the  sUd- 
ing-seat  brings  more  muscles  into  action  : 
there  is,  in  consequence,  an  increased  de- 
mand for  oxygen,  which  necessitates  a 
larger  chest-cavity;  and  the  effort  of  nature, 
by  aid  of  the  muscles  used  in  natural  and 
forced  respiration,  is  to  produce  this  result. 
Nearly  all  the  muscles  of  the  chest,  abdo- 
men, and  back  assist 
respiration  when  the 
exercise  is  violent  and 
prolonged.  Considering 
that  these  accessory 
muscles  are  contracted 
and  relaxed  at  least  one 
thousand  times  a  day  du- 
ring a  season  of 
vigorous  train- 
ing, we  ought 
to  get  some  re- 
sult in  the  shape 
of  increased  vol- 
ume of  muscle 
and  enlarged 
chest-capacity. 
This  would  nat- 
urally account 
for  the  increased 
girth  of  chest 
from  rowing. 


Figure  15,  h. 
{See  description,  page  89.) 


91 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  A  thleie 

The  physical  proportions  of  the  two 
wrestlers,  Figs.  12  and  13  (page  83),  as 
shown  by  the  tracings  in  Chart  VI.  (page 
86),  are  distinguished  from  those  just 
described  in  proportional  shortness  of  stat- 
ure and  in  great  volume  of  muscle.  In 
one  case  the  lengths  of  the  arms  and  legs 
are  very  short  for  the  length  of  the  body. 
In  both  cases  the  depth  of  chest  and  abdo- 
men is  proportionately  small,  but  the  width 
of  the  waist  corresponds  more  nearly  to 
the  other  measurements.  In  the  chart- 
tracings  of  Fig.  1 2  we  have  the  nearest 
approach  to  symmetry  in  the  girth  of  body 
and  limbs  that  has  thus  far  been  recorded. 

The  group  oi  tracings  in  Chart  VII. 
(page  102),  representing  Figs.  14,  15,  ^,  b^ 
and  16,  a,  b,  c  (pages  88— 99),  are  in  some 
respects  unique.  Here  we  have  for  the 
first  time  some  approach  to  symmetry  in 
the  relative  heights  of  different  parts  of  the 
body.  There  is  no  marked  divergence  in 
the  points  indicating  the  relative  length 
of  trunk  and  lower  limbs.  In  two  cases 
none  of  the  measurements  fall  below  the 
normal  or  fifty  per  cent  line,  and  in  one 
case  only  thirty  per  cent  of  them  fall  be- 
low the  eighty  per  cent  line.  In  Fig.  14 
the  line  of  symmetry  is  very  nearly  ap- 
proached in  the  chest,  waist,  hips,  thighs, 

92 


Physical  Cluiracieristics  of  the  A  thlcte 


and  knees.  The  upper  arm,  elbow,  and 
forearm,  also,  are  nearly  symmetrical,  al- 
though a  trifle  large  for  the  lower  extremi- 
ties. The  depth  of  chest  and  abdomen  is 
a  little  low,  and  the  lung-capacity  is  de- 
ficient; but  nearly  all  the  strength-tests  are 
in  the  region  of  the  maximum. 

Fig.  I  6,  ^,  b^  c,  is  pleasing ;  and  the  har- 
monic poise  and  beautiful  outlines  it  illus- 
trates serve  to  show,  also,  that  a  man  may 
depart  from  the  normal  standard  in  several 
parts  and  yet  retain  all  the  appearance  of 
grace  and  symmetry.  In  girth  of  neck 
this  man  approaches  within  two  and  one- 
half  per  cent  of  the  maximum,  while  in 
length  of  upper  arm  he  falls  to  within 
two  and  a  half  per  cent  of  the  minimum. 
The  waist  and  neck  are  very  broad  for  the 
hips  and  shoulders,  and  the  instep  is  ap- 
parently low,  as  the  result,  probably,  of  a 
high  arch  and  narrow  foot.  In  this,  as  in 
the  preceding  figure,  the  depth  of  chest  is 
somewhat  low,  and  the  lung-capacity  at 
the  normal.  The  strength-tests  would 
probably  have  exceeded  the  muscle  meas- 
urements, owing  to  the  shortness  of  the 
arms  and  legs,  and  have  reached  the  region 
of  the  maximum. 

These  two  men  are  base-ball  players  of 
some  prominence.      As  a  base-ball  pitcher 

93 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete 

offers  the  batters  from  two  hundred  to 
three  hundred  balls  a  game,  superior  de- 
velopment of  the  right  arm  and  shoulder 
is  the  natural  result,  although  the  gym- 
nasium training  counteracts  in  a  measure 
this  one-sided  tendency.  Any  one  familiar 
with  the  modern  style  of  delivering  the 
ball,  the  number  of  times  the  pitcher  turns 
around  to  perplex  the  batter,  or  watch  the 
bases,  will  know  that  the  neck  and  waist 
are  called  upon  for  a  large  share  of  work, 
and  must  be  developed  correspondingly. 
Where  the  arms  are  short,  the  muscles 
around  the  waist  and  body  are  used  more 
in  pitching.  As  the  leverage  in  the  former 
case  is  more  favorable  than  in  the  latter, 
this  advantage  should  naturally  add  to  the 
endurance  of  the  pitcher  so  favored.  In 
striking,  the  muscles  of  the  arms,  chest, 
abdomen,  and  back  are  brought  more  or 
less  vigorously  into  action.  In  running 
bases,  the  legs  and  arms  do  the  work,  as  in 
"sprinting;''  but  the  lungs  are  not  brought 
into  full  play,  as  in  running  long  distances, 
and  the  lung-capacity  is  but  slightly  in- 
creased. The  other  developments  peculiar 
to  base-ball  players  will,  of  course,  depend 
largely  upon  the  positions  they  occupy. 

In  Fig.  15,  ^,  b^  we  have  a  typical  la- 
crosse-player.     In  this  game  the  muscles 

94 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete 

of  the  arms,  chest,  back,  abdomen,  and  legs 
are  called  upon;  and  the  heart  and  lungs 
are  often  kept  in  a 
state  of  prolonged 
activity.  As  a 
means  of  general 
development,  few 
games  can  be  com- 
pared with  lacrosse. 
It  has  many  of  the 
advantages  of  foot- 
ball, without  its 
element  of  danger, 
although  the 
method  of  using 
the  stick  which 
has  come  into 
practice  within  the 
last  few  years 
threatens  to  de- 
prive lacrosse  of 
this  distinction. 
In  the  figure  under 
consideration,  we 
see  the  result  of  a 
harmonious  development  in  all  directions. 
No  one  point  stands  out  prominently.     The 

Figure  i6,  a,  b,  and  c.  —  S ,  Yale,  '88;  age,  24  years, 

9  months ;  weight,  149  lbs.  ;  height,  5  feet,  5.4  inches.  Has 
pitched  on  the  Yale  base-ball  nine  for  two  years,  and  had  con- 
siderable experience  in  ball-playing  before  entering  college. 


Figure  i6,  a. 


95 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  A  thlete 

extent  of  divergence  on  the  chart  is  Umited 
to  a  very  few  Unes,  and  the  approach  to 
symmetry  is  apparent.  The  length  meas- 
urements of  the  upper  arm  and  forearm 
fall  exactly  on  the  normal  line,  and  both 
are  perfectly  symmetrical  as  related  to  each 
other  and  to  the  right  and  left  sides. 
When  compared  with  other  parts  of  the 
body,  however,  it  will  be  seen  that  the 
arms  are  short,  illustrating  a  point  in  con- 
nection with  the  chart  that  may  be  of  in- 
terest. In  the  original  table,  the  fifty  per 
cent  line  represents  the  value  of  the  meas- 
urements for  each  part  at  which  the  great- 
est number  of  observations  occurred.  For 
example,  if  out  of  any  given  number  of 
men,  collected  from  all  parts  of  the  globe, 
the  largest  group  was  5  feet  5^  inches  in 
height,  this  measurement  would  naturally 
fall  upon  the  central  line  of  a  chart  com- 
posed of  these  records,  and  so  would  the 
measurements  of  the  other  parts  common 
to  the  greatest  number.  If  any  one  man 
could  be  found,  all  of  whose  measurements 
corresponded  to  those  on  the  central  line 
in  the  table,  he  would  be  termed  a  mean 
or  typical  man;  i.e.,  he  would  represent  the 
type  most  common  to  the  human  race.* 

*  "  The  conclusions  arrived  at  up  to  the  present  time,  by  the 
most  eminent  investigators  in  this  particular  branch  of  science 
(anthropometry),  may  be  summarily  stated  as  follows  :  — 

96 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  A  thlete 


The  height, 
weight,  and  physical 
proportions  of  such 
a  man  are  those  that 
all  men  who  have  at- 
tained their  growth 
would  possess  but 
for  the  influence  of 
climate,  heredity, 
nurture,  and  a  mul- 
titude of  accidental 
causes  that  have  as- 
sisted or  interfered 
with  nature's  plan  of 
development.  These 
causes,  operating  on 
a  grand  scale,  have 
given   us    the  forms 

"  I.  There  is  a  perfect  form 
or  type  of  man,  and  the  ten- 
dency of  the  race  is  to  attain 
this  type. 

"  2.  The  order  of  growth  is 
regular  toward  this  type. 

"  3.  The  variations  from  this  type  follow  a  definite  law,  the 
law  of  accidental  causes. 

"  4.  The  line  formed  by  these  variations,  when  arranged  in 
groups,  receding  on  either  side  of  their  mean,  is  the  curve  well 
known  to  mathematicians  as  the  binomial ;  it  was  first  applied  by 
Newton  and  Pascal  to  questions  of  astronomy  and  physics,  but 
it  is  applicable  to  all  the  qualities  of  man  which  can  be  repre- 
sented by  numbers. 

"  5.  The  more  numerous  the  data  obtained  by  actual  meas- 
urements, supposing  them  to  be  made  with  reasonable  care  and 
without  bias,  the  more  nearly  accurate  is  the  mean  result,  and 
the  more  closely  does  it  correspond  with  that  obtained  by  calcu- 
lation." —  Statistics,  Medical  and  Anthropological,  of  the  Pravost- 
Marshal-Generar s  Bureau,  Washington,  D.C. 


Figure  16,  b. 
{See  description,  page  95.) 


97 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  A  thlete 

and  proportions  that  characterize  differ- 
ent races. 

We  see  their  influence  also  upon  people 
of  the  same  race,  family,  and  kindred.  It  is 
manifest  that  a  chart  made  up  from  meas- 
urements of  ten  thousand  African  Bush- 
men, whose  average  height  is  4  feet  4.78 
inches,  would  have  a  different  mean  from 
a  chart  composed  of  the  measurements  of 
the  same  number  of  Englishmen  or  Amer- 
icans, whose  average  height  is  nearer  5  feet 
7I  inches.  For  the  same  reason  a  chart 
composed  of  the  measurements  of  a  picked 
class  in  the  community  would  represent  a 
higher  mean  than  a  chart  made  up  from 
a  class  less  favorably  situated. 

Now,  the  same  laws  that  govern  the 
growth  and  development  of  the  body  in 
races  and  different  classes  in  the  communi- 
ty are  just  as  apparent  in  the  development 
of  the  class  itself.  The  general  chart  at 
present  under  consideration  was  made  up 
largely  from  college  students,  as  stated  in 
the  preceding  article.  There  were  about 
as  many  men  above  the  mean  as  below  it 
in  the  measurements  of  every  part  taken. 
In  some  individual  cases  all  the  measure- 
ments were  above  the  mean,  in  other  cases 
all  were  below,  while  others  ranged  ex- 
tensively in  both  directions.     To  assume 

98 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete 

that  the  man  whose  measurements  all 
come  on  the  mean  normal  or  typical  line 
represents  the  ideal  type,  i.e.,  the  type  to 
pattern  after,  is  to  assume  that  the  stand- 
ing taken  by  the  average  man  of  a  class  is 
more  worthy  of  imitation  than  that  taken 
by  those  nearer  the  top.  If  this  were  true, 
we  should  be 
obliged  to  ad- 
mit that  the 
lengths  of  the 
upper  arm  and 
forearm  as 
shown  in  Chart 
VII.  to  come 
exactly  on  the 
mean  line  were 
the  only  normal 
proportions  ex- 
hibited by  this 
man,  and  that 
all  the  others 
had  exceeded 
the  proper 
standard.  This 
is  not  the  case. 
The  reverse, 
however,  is  true. 
With  a  good 
inheritance     t  o 


Figure  i6,  c. 
{See  description,  page  95.) 


99 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete 

Start  with,  and  by  dint  of  systematic  ex- 
ercise and  correct  habits  of  Hving,  this 
young  man  has  worked  his  way  up  through 
the  hfty,  sixty,  seventy,  and  eighty  per 
cent  classes  to  a  position  approximately 
near  the  ninety  per  cent  class.  The  meas- 
urements on  this  line  may  be  reasonably 
considered  to  define  his  normal  propor- 
tions, whereas  the  parts  remaining  on  the 
so-called  normal  or  typical  line  are  the 
only  ones  in  which  he  is  defective. 

The  point,  then,  which  is  of  the  great- 
est significance  is,  not  to  see  how  many  of 
your  measurements  come  in  the  centre  of 
the  chart,  but  to  first  endeavor  to  straighten 
your  own  line,  wherever  it  may  be,  and 
then  carry  it  forward  as  near  the  one  hun- 
dred per  cent  line  as  possible.  In  other 
words,  endeavor  to  obtain  a  symmetrical 
figure,  then  strive  for  a  full-orbed  and  har- 
monious development  of  all  parts  of  the 
body. 

By  so  doing  you  will  help  raise  the 
standard  of  the  mean,  and  assist  in  deter- 
mining the  exact  ratio  between  the  differ- 
ent heights  and  girths  that  exists  in  a  fully 
developed  man. 

We  have  seen  that  excellence  in  athlet- 
ics is  not  incompatible  with  a  fine  figure 
and  a  superb  development.     The  tendency, 

lOO 


Physical  CJiaracteristics  of  the  A  thlete 

however,  of  all  special  exercises  is  to  pro- 
duce special  results.  The  physical  char- 
acteristics which  we  have  found  peculiar 
to  runners,  jumpers,  oarsmen,  etc.,  have  in 
a  measure  been  acquired  by  long  and  ar- 
duous practice  in  these  sports.  In  many 
cases  the  special  qualifications  that  make  a 
man  a  first-class  athlete  are  gifts  of  nature. 
Add  to  this  inheritance  the  prolonged 
training  that  tends  to  cultivate  these  spe- 
cial powers  to  the  extreme,  and  we  get 
sometimes  a  prodigy,  but  more  often  a 
failure. 

It  would  be  of  interest  to  know  if  an 
inch  added  to  Myers's  legs  would  have 
made  him  a  greater  runner  than  an  inch 
added  to  his  sitting  height ;  or  an  inch 
added  to  Hanlan's  long  body  would  have 
made  him  a  greater  oarsman  than  an  inch 
added  to  his  relatively  short  legs.  There 
is  certainly  a  limit  beyond  which  the  de- 
velopment of  special  parts  cannot  be  car- 
ried without  interfering  with  the  functions 
of  other  parts  upon  which  their  ability  to 
act  effectually  depends.  This  and  many 
other  problems  of  a  similar  nature  can 
never  be  decided  until  an  immense  amount 
of  data  has  been  collected,  and  many  ex- 
periments have  been  performed.  In  the 
meantime  we  feel  prepared  to  affirm  that 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  A  thlete 


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102 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  A  thlete 

mankind  would  be  better  served  by  a  more 
general  cultivation  of  athletics  than  by  the 
cultivation  of  specialties  to  an  extreme ; 
that  the  development  of  athletes  them- 
selves would  be  more  complete,  and  that 
they  would  even  realize  a  greater  progress 
in  the  pursuit  of  their  specialties,  if  they 
participated  in  a  greater  range  of  exercises. 
The  runner  would  find  it  to  his  advantage 
to  practise  rowing,  and  to  use  the  gymna- 
sium for  the  purpose  of  cultivating  the 
muscles  used  in  forced  respiration.  The 
oarsman  would  add  greatly  to  his  breath- 
ing capacity  by  long-distance  running,  and 
acquire  dash  and  vim  through  foot-ball 
and  lawn  tennis.  The  jumper  could  add 
to  his  agility  by  frequent  trials  at  short-dis- 
tance running  and  occasional  spins  on  the 
bicycle.  The  gymnast  would  be  likely 
to  add  to  the  permanency  of  his  develop- 
ment, and  improve  his  constitutional  vigor, 
by  indulging  more  freely  in  out-of-door 
sports. 

And  so  on  through  all  the  range  of  spe- 
cialties. Let  the  active  learn  something 
from  the  strong,  and  the  strong  take  les- 
sons from  the  active,  while  both  acquire 
the  great  secret  of  enduring.  When  our 
athletes  shall  have  learned  the  full  value 
of  indirect  training,  we  shall  not  only  have 

103 


Physical  Characteristics  of  the  Athlete 


greater  athletic    performances,   but  better 
specimens   of  physical   manhood. 

In  conclusion,  let  it  be  said,  whatever 
may  be  the  physical  qualifications  of  the 
athlete,  in  his  achievements  he  will  fall 
short  of  success  without  a  well-developed 
nervous  system,  and  the  possession  o{  that 
almost  sublime  quality  in  man,  courage. 
As  a  means  of  developing  such  qualities, 
added  to  those  of  coolness,  presence  of 
mind,  and  the  rapid  and  responsible  exer- 
cise of  judgment  under  trying  circum- 
stances, which  are  so  desirable  in  the 
**  battle  of  life,"  athletics  should  be  kept 
from  degenerating  into  the  bad  associa- 
tions that  often  accompany  professional- 
ism, and  be  elevated  to  a  high  plane  by 
the  lovers  of  manly  sport. 


104 


GOLF 


By  H,  J.   Whigham 

{Amateur  CJuimpion  of  the  United  States ,  1896) 


Illustrations  by  A.  B.  Frost 


r. 

*^ 

' 

^^ 

«T 

3 

^/ 


T  is  natural  that 
a  game  which 
has  formed  the 
chief  recreation 
of    the     Scottish 


people  for  several  centuries 
should  have  by  this  time  acquired  a  large 
literature  of  its  own ;  so  much  so,  that  two 
of  the  best  volumes  in  the  whole  domain 
of  sporting  history  are  devoted  to  this  sub- 
ject. It  will  be  unnecessary  and  superfluous, 
therefore,  to  enter  upon  a  full  description 
of  the  game's  development  in  the  remote 
past ;  for  are  not  its  annals  written  in  the 
pages  of  the  Badminton  book  upon  golf, 
and  did  not  Sir  Walter  Simpson  go  back 
farther  yet,  and  invent  a  pretty  legend  to 
explain  the  origin  of  the  pastime  ?  All 
this  has  been  done  for  us  already.  It  is 
needless  to  recount  how  the  popularity  of 

107 


Qotf 

the  game  began  in  the  seventeenth  century 
seriously  to  menace  the  profession  of  the 
soldier  and  the  pursuit  of  religion;  how  the 
great  Montrose  preferred  a  friendly  contest 
at  Musselburgh  to  raiding  the  base  Low- 
lander,  or  how  Charles  I.  forfeited  his 
crown  and  his  life  because  he  allowed  the 
Irish  Rebellion  to  break  out  while  he  was 
sacrificing  his  royal  duties  to  indulgence  in 
this  ancient  sport.  More  recent  passages  in 
history  tell  the  same  tale.  The  one  fact  of 
importance  which  has  been  related  of  the 
predecessor  of  Queen  Victoria  on  the  throne 
of  England  is  that  he  was  elected  captain 
of  the  St.  Andrews  Golf 
Club  ;  and  it  is  certain 
to-day  that  Mr.  A.  J. 
Balfour  would  refuse 
Vs  the  premiership  of 
j;}^^  Great  Britain  if 
A  he  could  by  so 


doing  become 
the  amateur 
golf  champion 
of  Scotland  and 
England. 

[The  distinctive  feature  of  this  Club-house,  as  shown  by  the 
plan,  is  that  it  is  divided  into  three  parts.  One  is  given  over  to 
the  dining-room,  kitchen,  and  servants'  quarters  ;  another  to 
dressing  and  locker-rooms ;  and  the  third  to  the  social  or  general 
club  features  —  the  three  wings  being  joined  by  an  elliptical  hall 
—  the  rendezvous.] 

io8 


Plati  of  Newport  Golf  Chib-hotise. 


Golf 

In  order,  then, 
to  avoid  returning 
over  ground  that  has  been 
so  often  trodden  before,  it 
will  be  well  to  confine  our- 
selves to  the  more  recent  in- 
cidents in  the  growth  of  the 
game,  more  especially  those 
which  have  to  do  with 
its  spread  in  this  country. 
For  even  Mr.  Horace 
Hutchinson's  excellent 
work  in  the  Badminton 
series  was  contributed 
before  England  became 
thoroughly  converted.  Nine  years  ago, 
at  the  English  universities,  not  only  was 
the  game  played  by  a  very  small  body  of 
undergraduates  over  the  half-inundated 
cricket-fields  during  the  winter  months, 
but  the  ignorance  displayed  by  all  who  did 
not  belong  to  this  devoted  band  was  simply 
appalling  to  one  who  had  been  born  and 
educated  north  of  the  Tweed.  The  point 
of  view  taken  by  most  Englishmen  was 
well  expressed  when  it  was  proposed  about 
a  year  later  that  the  members  of  the  team 
selected  to  represent  Oxford  in  the  inter- 
university  golf  match  should  be  allowed 
the  privilege  of  wearing  a  "half-blue,"  — 

109 


Golf 

the  full  "blue"  being  the  reward  for  ser- 
vices in  the  Rowing  Eight,  the  Cricket 
Eleven,  or  foot-ball  teams.  The  president 
of  the  *' blues"  committee  was  at  that  time 
one  of  the  best  all-round  athletes  in  Oxford, 
and  he  very  strongly  objected  to  extending 
any  university  recognition  to  the  exponents 
of  a  game  which,  as  he  put  it,  did  not 
induce  perspiration.  In  other  words,  he 
confirmed  the  general  opinion  of  outsiders 
that  golf  is  not  an  athletic  pursuit  at  all, 
but  merely  a  mild  recreation  for  old  men. 
Now,  although  it  is  perfectly  true  that 
children  often  and  octogenarians  can  trudge 
round  the  links  and  enjoy  the  fresh  air  and 
the  mild  exercise  involved  in 
tapping  the  ball,  it  is  entirely 
wrong  to  suppose  that  the  game, 
when  properly  played,  does  not 
require  the  same 
muscular  strength, 
skill,  -and  endur- 
ance which  are 
requisite  for 
preeminence  in 
all  of  the  higher 
branches  of  sport. 
Golf  was  never  in- 
tended  to  be  a 
game    for    team 


Uncertain  A  rithmetic. 


lO 


Golf 


Willie  Dufm^s  Shop  at  Shinnecock. 


''^  matches,  and  for    that    rea- 

son it  is  probably  right  to  leave  it  out  of 
the  reckoning  in  university  athletics.  On 
the  other  hand,  we  need  only  look  for  a 
moment  at  the  career  of  the  best  amateur 
players  in  the  world  to  see  the  truth  of  the 
assertion,  upon  which  I  should  like  to  lay 
some  stress,  that  strength,  skill,  and  train- 
ing are  absolutely  necessary  for  success  in 
the  royal  and  ancient  game  ;  for  if  it  were 
really  a  pastime  for  old  men,  women,  and 
children,  as  so  many  seem  to  imagine,  or  if 
it  were  simply  a  society  fad,  as  it  would 
appear  to  a  large  section  of  the  American 
public  who  have  been  unaccustomed  in  the 
past  to  any  form  of  athletics  which  can  be 
indulged  in  by  a  man  after  he  has  left  col- 

III 


Golf 

lege,  then  the  best  players  would  be  drawn 
indifferently  from  the  ranks  of  the  strong 
and  the  weak,  the  young  and  the  aged. 
This,  however,  is  not  the  case.  Every 
prominent  golfer  whose  name  comes  read- 
ily to  mind  has  achieved  success  in  other 
branches  of  sport.  Mr.  F.  G.  Tait,  the 
amateur  champion  of  Great  Britain  for 
1896,  was  a  fair  cricketer  at  school  and  a 
first-rate  foot-ball  player.  He  did  not  go 
through  a  university  career,  and  so  his 
prowess  on  the  foot-ball  field  was  not  widely 
known  ;  but  he  was  one  of  the  strongest 
players  at  Sandhurst,  the  training-school  for 
the  army,  where  strong  men  are  rife.  His 
predecessor,  Mr.  Leslie  Balfour-Melville, 
whose  record  as  a  golfer  is  a  long  and  glo- 
rious one,  was  for  years  the  best  all-round 
athlete  in  Scotland.  He  was  one  of  the 
few  cricketers  from  the  North  who  could 
ev-er  rank  with  the  English  exponents  of 
the  game.  At  school  he  was  one  of  the 
most  brilliant  foot-ball  players  in  the  coun- 
try ;  his  skill  at  lawn  tennis  was  far  above 
the  average  ;  and  it  may  be  remarked  in 
passing,  that  he  is  a  billiard-player  of  no 
mean  ability;  for,  curiously  enough,  accu- 
racy in  billiards  and  golf  seem  to  go  to- 
gether in  a  great  many  cases. 

Then,  again,  we  are  not  surprised  to  find 


Golf 


The  Drive. 


that  Mr.  J.  E.  Laidlay,  who  is  without 
doubt  the  most  brilHant  match  player  of 
all  the  first-class  amateurs,  was  one  of  the 
most  remarkable  school  cricketers  when 
he  was  a  boy  at  Loretto  ;  and  so  instances 
might  be  multiplied.  Mr.  Horace  Hutch- 
inson was  a  good  cricketer  in  his  college 
'  "3 


Golf 

days;  Mr.  Mure  Fergusson,  the  Blackwells, 
and  Mr.  John  Ball  are  all  men  of  great 
physical  strength  and  muscular  activity. 
The  last-named  player  had  the  distinction 
of  being  the  first  amateur  to  win  the  open 
championship ;  and,  although  there  are 
others  who  in  the  last  two  or  three  years 
have  met  him  on  even  terms,  he  was  for  a 
short  time  quite  unique  in  the  power  and 
accuracy  of  his  play,  and  it  is  certain  that 
he  could  never  have  reached  such  perfec- 
tion if  it  had  not  been  for  the  country  life 
which  allowed  him  constant  practice  and 
plenty  of  hard  physical  exercise. 

It  may  be  taken  for  granted,  then,  that 
although  a  man  can  play  the  game  as  long 
as  he  can  walk,  or  even  ride  round  the  links 
on  a  pony,  the  real  science  of  golf  can  only 
be  acquired  by  men  of  athletic  capacity. 
To  saunter  round  the  eighteen  holes  on  a 
summer  afternoon,  with  intervals  for  to- 
bacco and  conversation,  is  one  thing.  It 
is  another  and  a  very  different  undertaking 
to  go  through  a  championship  tournament, 
playing  thirty-six  holes  a  day,  when  every 
drive  must  be  hit  hard  and  clean,  every 
approach  must  be  accurate,  every  put  must 
be  true  to  a  hair's  breadth.  A  foot-ball 
match  is  a  matter  of  less  than  two  hours ; 
from  the  instant  the  ball  is  in  play  the  ner- 

114 


Golf 

vous  Strain  is  removed,  and  the  constant 
action  requires  a  sound  wind  and  fleetness 
of  foot,  but  not  the  absolute  freedom  and 
yet  control  of  the  muscles  which  is  requi- 
site for  steady  driving,  nor  anything  like 

the  strain  on  the 
nerves  which  is 
kept  up  from  the 
start  to  the  fin- 
ish of  a  close  en- 
counter at  golf. 

It  was  prob- 
ably an  awaken- 
ing to  the  fact 
that  golf  was, 
after  all,  a  real 
branch  of  athlet- 
ics that  brought 
about  its  sudden 
and  extraordi- 
nary popularity 
in  England  eight 
y.vv.  o^  ^i^c  years  ago. 

The  conversion 
of  the  South  began  when  many  of  the 
prominent  cricketers  discarded  the  bat  to 
take  up  the  golf  club.  Having  for  many 
years  dismissed  the  Scotch  game  with  va- 
rious disparaging  terms,  such  as  ''  parlor 
skittles''    or    "Scotch    croquet,"    they    at 

"5 


Golf 

length  discovered  that  it  only  required  a 
single  trial  to  enamour  them  of  this  much- 
despised  pastime.  Moreover,  it  became 
apparent^  that  for  those  who  had  left  col- 
lege, and  settled  down  to  a  regular  profes- 
sion, cricket  was  a  vain  and  elusive  pursuit, 
making  far  too  strenuous  demands  upon 
the  time  and  purse  to  come  within  the 
reach  of  any  but  the  rich  and  idle.  Golf, 
on  the  other  hand,  could  be  freely  enjoyed 
by  all  who  were  able  to  spare  an  afternoon 
a  week.  No  sooner,  therefore,  were  the 
floodgates  opened  than  the  new  waters 
threatened  to  inundate  the  whole  field  of 
English  sport.  The  stanchest  cricketers 
were  found  among  the  proselytes ;  lawn 
tennis  became  a  thing  of  the  past ;  the 
crack  shots  from  the  midland  counties 
would  tarry  on  the  links  of  St.  Andrews 
late  in  the  year,  when  the  partridges  and 
pheasants  were  waiting  to  be  killed  at 
home ;  even  the  rabid  fox-hunter  found 
himself  wasting  whole  days  when  the  frost 
was  out  of  the  ground,  chasing  the  gutta- 
percha instead  of  the  brush.  Heretofore 
in  Scotland  an  inland  links  was  exceedingly 
rare ;  but  now  they  sprang  up  in  every 
county  of  Great  Britain.  Old  lawns,  on 
whose  immemorial  turf  it  had  been  reck- 
oned a  sin  even  to  walk,  were  ruthlessly 

n6 


i  s 


Golf 

hacked  to  pieces  by  the  iron  of  the  golfing 
tyro ;  the  cattle  were  robbed  of  their  pas- 
turelands  in  order  that  the  putting-greens 
should  not  be  disturbed  ;  and,  last  but  not 
least,  the  Sabbath  was  freely  violated  by 
men  and  women  who  had  never  before 
missed  a  morning  service  in  church. 

Needless  to  say,  this  sudden  enthusiasm 
was  regarded  with  supreme  distrust  by  the 
conservative  Scotchman.  New  elements 
were  introduced  into  the  game  which  he 
could  least  endure.  Formerly  the  only 
prizes  in  the  year  had  been  the  autumn 
and  spring  medals  at  the  leading  clubs;  and 
these  were  coveted  for  glory  and  not  for 
their  intrinsic  value,  which  amounted  to 
less  than  that  of  the  expense  in  clubs  and 
balls  which  it  cost  to  win  them.  The  real 
game  of  golf  was  to  be  found  only  in  match 
play  ;  and  the  counting  of  scores  was  re- 
garded with  the  utmost  abhorrence  except 
on  those  rare  occasions,  twice  in  the  year, 
when  it  was  absolutely  necessary.  The 
Englishman,  however,  looked  upon  the 
matter  in  a  very  different  light.  Long 
practice  in  lawn-tennis  tournaments  had 
inured  him  to  the  vicious  habit  of  pot- 
hunting,  so  that  golf  for  him  was  a  new 
and  unending  source  of  joy.  Tournaments 
and  sweepstakes  were  matters  of  weekly 

119 


Golf 

occurrence  ;  a  system  of  handicapping  was 
instituted,  and  the  young  golfer  was  chiefly 
engaged  not  so  much  in  improving  his 
game  as  in  defeating  the  vigilance  of  the 
green-committee ;  nor  was  it  at  all  rare  to 
find  a  veritable  duflfer  in  possession  of  many 
valuable  trophies,  any  one  of  which  would 
have  bought  up  all  the  medals  in  the  keep- 
ing of  the  best  first-class  player  in  Scotland. 
It  can  hardly  be  wondered,  then,  that  the 
term  "  English  golfer  "  became  one  of  re- 
proach upon  the  Northern  courses.      The 


Temper 
1 20 


Golj 

pilgrims  from  the  South  were,  in  fact,  a 
terrible  nuisance.  They  had  no  respect 
for  the  sacred  traditions  of  the  game ;  they 
appeared  on  the  classic  heath  of  St.  An- 
drews adorned  in  flaring  ''blazers,"  which 
filled  the  mind  of  the  orthodox  Scot  with 
loathing ;  they  never  played  a  match,  but 
toiled  round  the  links  with  pencil  and  card, 


Far:.    :  :        .  /  ,    ■    Go'f  Club. 

intent  on  deceiving  themselves  into  the 
belief  that  they  were  daily  lowering  their 
record.  A  famous  old  caddie  at  North 
Berwick  expressed  the  general  feeling  of 
his  outspoken  class  when  he  pointed  to 
one  of  these  misguided  individuals  busily 
engaged  with  his  card  on  one  of  the  put- 


Golf 

ting-greens,  utterly  oblivious  to  the  fact 
that  he  was  delaying  the  field  while  he 
worked  in  the  higher  branches  of  arith- 
metic, and  remarked  in  a  loud  tone  of 
contempt  to  one  of  his  party,  **  D'ye  see 
yon  man  ?  D'ye  ken  the  best  club  in  his 
set  —  it's  his  pencil." 

This  was  only  one  aspect  of  the  move- 
ment, however ;  and  now  that  the  pencil- 
ling disease  has  more  or  less  abated,  it  is 
only  fair  to  admit  that  the  new  impetus 
given  to  the  game  by  its  sudden  popular- 
ity outside  of  Scotland  has  been  in  the  long 
run  most  beneficial.  The  competition  has, 
of  course,  become  far  greater  ;  and  as  young 
athletes  have  taken  up  the  sport  more  and 
more,  the  standard  of  excellence  has  pro- 
portionately increased.  I  am  quite  willing 
to  believe  that  '*  Young  Tom  "  Morris  was 
one  of  the  greatest  golfers  that  ever  lived, 
but  I  am  equally  convinced  that  there  were 

n  o  amateurs 
in  his  time 
who  could 
compare  with 
the  players  of 
to-day.  The 
conditions  are 
certainly  in 
our     f  a  V  o  r. 


Lost  Ball  ill  the  Meadmv. 


122 


Golf 

Not  only  have  the  greens  be- 
come easier,  and  straight 
driving  less  essential,  but  the 
implements  of  war  are  far 
more  efficacious.  The  qual- 
ity of  the  balls  has  greatly 
improved,  and  the  introduc- 
tion of  the  ^^bulger"  has 
revolutionized  the  art  of 
driving.  With  the  old- 
fashioned  long-headed 
club  it  was  practically 
impossible  to  hit  hard 
with  any  accuracy,  the 
slightest  deviation  in 
a  terrific  slice  or  pull. 
Nowadays  the  curve  on  the  face  of  the 
club,  and  the  more  compact  volume  of 
weight  make  the  matter  of  direction  so 
much  easier,  that  a  far  greater  force  can 
be  given  to  the  stroke.  Twenty  years  ago 
a  man  who  was  a  long  driver  was  at  once 
stamped  as  an  erratic  player,  not  to  be  re- 
lied upon.  Now  unless  a  certain  average 
of  distance  is  maintained,  no  one  can  rank 
as  a  first-class  player. 

But  it  was  not  merely  the  old-fashioned 
weapons  which  handicapped  the  amateurs 
of  the  past  generation.  We  have  only  to 
consider  who  they  were  to  see  that,  other 

123 


Topped. 

aim     involving 


Golf 

things  being  equal,  they  could  not  possibly 
have  competed  with  the  best  players  of  to- 
day. In  the  first  place,  they  were  far  be- 
hind the  professionals,  which  is  not  the 
case  at  present.  Secondly,  they  were,  for 
the  most  part,  middle-aged  men;  so  much 
so,  that  it  was  considered  an  impertinence 
for  any  youngster  to  play  against  them. 
They  kept  up  the  pleasing  fiction  for  a 
long  time  that  at  golf,  as  at  whist,  the 
ripeness  of  long  experience  was  necessary 
for  success  ;  and  it  required  many  exposi- 
tions of  the  game  to  persuade  them  that 
the  cracks  of  the  younger  generation,  men 
like  Mr.  J.  E.  Laidlay  and  the  Black- 
wells,  were  introducing  a  new  and  supe- 
rior kind  of  play.  When,  for  instance, 
Mr.  Ted  Blackwell  used  to  drive  across 
the  corner  of  the  railway  at  St.  Andrews, 
—  a  carry  of  about  one  hundred  and  seventy 
yards,  —  his  feat  was  regarded  as  a  sort 
of  circus  trick,  wonderful  to  look  at,  but 
quite  outside  the  true  sphere  of  golf.  After 
a  while,  however,  it  became  apparent  that 
not  only  could  the  trick  be  repeated,  but, 
what  was  more  important,  Mr.  Blackwell 
almost  invariably  beat  his  opponent;  and 
gradually  the  old  order  began  to  change, 
making  way  for  the  new,  which  was  has- 
tened in  its  coming  by  the  fresh  impulse 


Golf 


Four  Strokes  at  the  Bunker  and  not  over  yet. 


from  the  athletes  in  England.  In  other 
words,  the  kind  of  golf  which  could  be 
played  by  an  elderly  Scotch  judge  on  Mon- 
day afternoon  at  Musselburgh,  in  a  stiff 
collar  and  a  high  silk  hat,  ceased  to  be 
regarded  as  the  best  standard  of  excellence 
which  could  be  reached  by  the  amateur. 
It  was  recognized  now  that  to  play  the 
game  to  its  full  advantage  a  man  must  be 
in  good  health  and  training,  with  muscle 
and  eye  in  perfect  accord  ;  and  we  must 
thank  the  English  cricketer  for  helping  to 


125 


Golf 

impress  this  fact  upon  the  hardy  but  con- 
servative Northerner. 

It  is  now  time  to  turn  to  the  growth  of 
the  game  in  this  country,  which  is  the 
main  theme  of  the  present  article.  We 
have  seen  that  the  sudden  spread  of  golf 
in  England  was  almost  contemporaneous 
with  a  new  development  in  the  evolution 
of  the  sport.  It  remains  to  inquire  how 
far  that  development  has  been  appreciated 
in  America.  The  particular  genius  of  the 
American  has  a  tendency  to  reduce  sports 
of  all  kinds  to  a  scientific  basis  ;  and  there- 
fore it  is  to  be  expected  that  sooner  or 
later  the  lovers  of  the  game  in  this  coun- 
try will  be  able  to  throw  some  new  light 
not  only  upon  the  methods  of  play,  but 


Stnoking-roont  of  the  Essex  County  {Mass.)  Club. 
126 


Golf 


Upon  the  interpretation 
of  the  rules,  which  has 
always  been  a  difficulty 
since  golf  passed  out  of 
the  hands  of  the  few  into  the  possession 
of  the  many,  who  cannot  be  controlled 
by  tradition  alone,  but  need  the  assist- 
ance of  hard  and  fast  laws.  It  seems  to 
me  that  so  far  the  players  in  this  coun- 
try have  been  more  exercised  over  the 
proper  reading  of  the  regulations  than  they 
have  over  the  development  of  the  game 
itself.  And  since  it  is  extremely  important 
that  no  radical  changes  should  be  made 
in  the  rules,  which  long  experience  has 
proved  to  be  best  adapted  to  the  govern- 
ment of  the  game,  before,  at  least,  it  is 
definitely  understood  what  the  game  is,  it 
may  be  well  to  point  out  a  few  of  the  main 
shortcomings  of  the  golf  that  is  played  on 
this  side  of  the  Atlantic. 


27 


Golf 

You  cannot  play  golf  without  links,  any 
more  than  you  can  make  bricks  without 
straw,  so  that  the  first  consideration  is  that 
your  links  should  be  as  good  as  possible. 
It  is  five  or  six  years  since  the  game  was 
introduced  into  the  United  States;  and  yet 
the  fact  remains,  that  there  is  hardly  a 
course  in  the  country  that  in  any  way  ap- 
proximates a  first-class  links  in  the  proper 
sense  of  the  term.  Of  course  allowances 
must  be  made  for  the  many  drawbacks 
which  have  to  be  overcome  in  the  way  of 
climate  and  soil ;  but  there  are  so  many 
errors  in  the  best  courses  in  the  country 
which  might  easily  be  remedied,  that  it 
seems  necessary  to  indicate  exactly  what 
are  the  features  of  the  best  courses  in  Eng- 
land and  Scotland,  and  what  is  the  stan- 
dard at  which  we  have  to  aim.  To  put 
it  as  shortly  as  possible.  Great  Britain  is 
encircled  for  the  most  part  by  a  belt  of 
sandy  soil  from  half  a  mile  to  a  mile  in 
breadth  which  has  been  formed  by  the  re- 
ceding of  the  ocean.  This  belt  of  land  is 
of  an  undulating  character,  with  occasional 
abrupt  sand-hills,  and  the  whole  surface 
is  covered  with  a  short  velvety  turf,  which 
stands  a  great  deal  of  wear  and  tear,  but  is 
always  smooth  and  soft ;  even  in  the  raini- 
est summer  the  grass  seldom  grows  long 

138 


Golf 


On  the  Green. 


enough  on  the  regular  course  to  conceal 
a  golf  ball  from  sight,  while  the  climate 
of  the  British  Isles  is  such  that  a  drought 
seldom  comes  to  parch  the  young  blades, 
or  scorch  the  putting-greens.  Such  a  thing 
as  a  stone  or  a  tree  is  practically  unknown 
on  the  best  courses;  good  play  will  always 
secure  good  lies  on  perfect  turf,  while  the 
putting-greens  are  simply  part  of  the  regu- 
lar course,  not  laid  out  with  a  spirit-level, 


Golf 

but  taken  as  they  come  with  the  natural 
roll  of  the  land,  which  greatly  increases 
the  necessity  of  skill  and  accuracy  in  ne- 
gotiating the  finer  part  of  the  game.  The 
only  hazards  admissible  are  sand-bunkers, 
which  occur  naturally  at  irregular  inter- 
vals ;  the  long  grass  which  on  the  sea- 
shore is  called  ''bent,"  and  which  generally 
bounds  the  edge  oi  the  course  to  prevent 
wild  driving  ;  the  gorse,  which  is  an  inci- 
dent of  most  Scotch  links ;  and,  if  nature 
happens  to  supply  it,  a  water  hazard  in  the 
shape  of  a  pond  or  stream.  There  are 
cases  of  stone  walls  on  Prestwick  and  North 
Berwick,  two  of  the  finest  courses  in  Scot- 
land, but  they  are  there  of  necessity  and 
not  by  choice  ;  and  to  imagine  that  they 
are  proper  adjuncts,  would 
be  equivalent  to 
considering  that 
every  racket-court 
must  have  a  cracked 
wall  because  there  hap- 
pens to  be  a  slight  fissure  in 
the  best  court  at 
Lords. 

Now,       the 

courses   which 

are   laid   out   on 

Enthusiasm.  this  saud-belt  of 


[30 


Wasted  time. 


Golf 

Great  Britain  are  not  held 
to    be   best    be- 
cause   they    are 
recommended 
by  custom,  but 
because  it  only 
requires   a    sin- 
gle   day    upon 
any  one  of  them 
to  find  that  the 
game   takes  on 
new  features  of  in- 
terest which  it  has 
never  possessed  be- 
fore.   A  man  who 

has  once  ridden  upon  a  modern  safety  with 
pneumatic  tires  would  never  go  back  to 
the  old-fashioned  high  bicycle  with  thin 
cushions;  so  one  who  has  played  golf  at 
Prestwick  or  St.  Andrews  knows  at  once 
what  are  the  possibilities  of  the  game. 
Imagine,  therefore,  the  astonishment  of 
a  Scotch  golfer  upon  reading  the  accounts 
of  some  of  the  prominent  courses  in  this 
country.  Here  are  a  few  examples  :  "  It 
is  an  inland  course  of  stone-wall  hazards, 
rocky  pastures  bordered  by  ploughed  fields 
and  woods,  and  is  prolific  in  those  little 
hollows  known  as  cuppy  lies;"  or  this: 
**  The  hazards  are  mainly  artificial ;  there 
131 


GoCJ 

are  some  stretches  of  sand,  railroad  em- 
bankment, and  deep  roads  that  are  tests  of 
skill  and  temper  ; ''  or  this  :  "  There  are 
nine  holes  in  the  course,  which  furnishes 
great  variety  in  its  hazards  of  hills,  stone 
walls,  railroad  embankments  lined  with 
blast-furnace  slag,  apple-trees,  and  a  com- 
bination of  terrors  in  front  of  what  is 
known  as  the  Devil's  Hole,  consisting 
of  brook,  bowlders,  and  road,  which  has 
spoiled  many  a  score;  "  or,  best  of  all :  "A 
player  who  has  done  a  round  at  the  Coun- 
try Club  will  have  passed  over  various 
points  of  avenue,  steeple-chase  course, 
race-track,  polo-fields,  and  pigeon-shooting 
grounds ;  he  will  have  come  triumphantly 
through  a  purgatorial  stone- wall  jump,  a 
sand-bunker  and  bastion,  a  water-jump,  and 
finally  a  vast  gravel  pit  or  crater.  .  .  . 
Stone  walls,  trees,  ploughed  fields,  fences, 
and  chasms  present  excellent  sporting  re- 
quirements on  a  course/' 

Many  more  instances  might  be  quoted, 
but  these  are  quite  sufficient  to  explain  ex- 
actly what  a  golf-links  ought  not  to  be.  A 
golfer  is  not  a  quarry  man,  that  he  should  go 
down  into  a  gravel-pit  to  extricate  his  ball 
from  the  midst  of  bowlders ;  nor  is  he  one 
of  the  hewers  of  wood  or  drawers  of  water, 
that  he  should  slash  the  trees  with  bis  nib- 

132 


Golf 


Flayi7ig  as  if  he  owned  the  Green 


OF  THE 


Golf 


The  Golf  Links  at  Tuxedo. 


lick  like  a  modern  Don  Quixote,  or  cover 
himself  with  mire  from  a  muddy  ditch.  It 
is  understood,  of  course,  that  Nature  can- 
not entirely  be  overcome.  The  coast  of 
Maine,  where  there  is  enough  moisture  in 
the  air  to  keep  the  greens  in  good  condi- 
tion, is  too  rocky  ;  while  the  summer  cli- 
mate of  Long  Island  prevents  the  courses 
there  from  being  kept  in  first-class  condi- 
tion, although  the  quality  of  soil  is  equal 
to  anything  in  Scotland  or  England.  Still, 
even  if  the  ideal  links  can  never  be  quite 
135 


Golf 

attainable,  it  is  possible,  by  anning  in  the 
right  direction,  to  get  a  course  which  shall 
be  for  all  practical  purposes  a  perfect  test, 
of  golf.  To  arrive  at  such  a  consum- 
mation, it  is  necessary  always  to  keep  the 
ideal  in  view ;  and  the  first  object,  there- 
fore, should  be  to  procure  the  best  possi- 
ble turf  all  through  the  course  and  on  the 
putting-greens.  Next,  it  should  be  re- 
membered that,  if  possible,  all  the  hazards, 
with  the  exception  of  a  stream  or  a  pond, 
should  be  sand-bunkers.  Long  grass  is 
admissible,  but  should  be  avoided  in  the 
direct  line  of  play,  because  it  leads  to  so 
much  waste  of  time  in  hunting  for  lost 
balls.  Every  single  tree  on  the  links 
should  be  ruthlessly  cut  down.  If  a  pic- 
turesque landscape  is  insisted  upon,  it  is 
easy  enough  to  leave  the  woods  which 
may  happen  to  lie  on  the  confines ;  but 
they  should  be  regarded  as  out  of  bounds, 
and  never  played  through.  Every  bowlder 
and  stone  should  be  removed  with  assid- 
uous care;  for  they  are  merely  responsible 
for  broken  clubs  and  loss  of  temper,  and 
have  nothing  in  the  world  to  do  with  the 
game.  Finally,  the  putting-greens  should 
be  left  as  Nature  made  them,  except  in 
so  far  as  they  are  kept  in  perfect  condi- 
tion by  rolling  and  mowing.     They  ought 

136 


Golf 


not  to  be  laid  out  on  a  dead  level  so  as 
to  preclude  any  nicety  in  the  judgment 
of  curves,  but  should  be  gently  undulat- 
ing, and  always  guarded  in  some  way  by  a 
hazard.  In  this  country  it  is  generally  ne- 
cessary to  water  them,  that  they  may  not 
become  parched  and  inordinately  keen; 
on  the  other  hand,  it  must  be  remembered 
that  the  smoother  and  keener  they  are  up 
to  a  certain  point,  the  greater  will  be  the 
skill  called  into  play  both  in  putting  and 
approaching.  A  man  who  has  been  ac- 
customed to  pitch  the  ball  boldly  on  to  a 
slow  level  putting-green  with  fair  accuracy, 
will  find  himself  hopelesslv  at  sea  when  he 


Stymie  or  not  Stymie? 


Golf 

has  to  contend  with  a  keen  slope  where 
a  hair's  breadth  deviation  from  the  true 
direction  will  lead  to  instant  perdition. 
To  take  cases  in  point,  the  putting-greens 
at  Shinnecock,  where  the  championship 
meeting  was  held  last  year,  were  far  too 
small  and  keen,  although  they  were  beau- 
tifully true.  Those  at  Meadowbrook,  on 
the  contrary,  are  perfect  in  condition  ;  but 
they  are,  for  the  most  part,  so  level  and 
slow,  that  approach  play  is  rendered  com- 
paratively easy. 

So  much  for  the  nature  of  the  ground. 
A  word  or  two  remains  to  be  said  upon 
the  laying  out  of  the  eighteen  holes.  I 
say  eighteen  advisedly,  because  a  course  of 
half  the  distance  can  never  be  placed  in 
the  first  class.  The  expenses  incurred  in 
laying  out  golf-links  in  this  country  are 
generally  so  great,  that  it  has  been  deemed 
best  in  most  cases  to  get  nine  good  holes 
rather  than  eighteen  of  an  inferior  nature. 
But  this  should  always  be  regarded  as 
a  temporary  measure.  It  is  not  merely 
a  matter  of  convenience  in  tournaments, 
which  can  only  be  held  with  any  satisfac- 
tion on  a  full  course ;  but  in  every-day  play 
a  nine-hole  round  becomes  very  monoto- 
nous, and  does  not  allow  sufficient  scope 
for  versatility  in  the  game. 

138 


Golf 


A   Good  Lie. 


As  far  as  I  am  able  to  judge,  there  are 
many  nine-hole  courses  in  the  East  which 
are  admirably  constructed,  —  Meadow- 
brook,  for  instance,  being  very  well  laid 
out ;  but  there  is  not  one  of  the  eighteen- 
hole  rounds  that  approaches  perfection. 
Take  Shinnecock,  for  instance,  which, 
from  the  nature  of  its  soil,  ought  to  be  an 
almost  ideal  field  for  play :  there  is  hardly  a 
single  hole  of  a  good  length  ;  that  is  to  say, 

139 


Golf 


Club,  Yonkers,  N.Y. 


the  distances  are  so  arranged  that  not  only 
is  the  prowess  of  the  good  golfer  seldom 
brought  into  evidence,  but  the  chances 
of  good  and  bad  are  in  a  fair  way  of  being 
equalized.  The  chief  thing  to  aim  at  in 
distributing  the  holes  is  to  arrange  them 
in  such  a  way  that  each  can  be  reached 
from  the  tee  by  one  or  two  or  three  j^// 
shots,  as  the  case  may  be.  That  is  practi- 
cally the  whole  gist  of  the  matter.  For  it 
is  obvious  that,  under  such  conditions,  a 
player  cannot  miss  a  single  shot,  cannot 
even   play   an    indifferent  stroke,   without 


140 


Golf 

being  penalized.  If,  on  the  other  hand, 
the  length  of  a  hole  is  such  that  it  cannot 
be  covered  in  one  shot,  and  yet  if  the  drive 
off  the  tee  goes  only  a  hundred  yards  or  so, 
it  can  still  be  covered  in  two,  by  the  aid  of 
a  good  second  ;  then  it  is  evident  that  one 
drive  is,  for  all  practical  purposes,  as  good 
as  another.  When  there  are  many  holes  of 
such  a  description,  a  player  may  make  a  bad 
drive  off  every  tee,  and  yet  defeat  an  oppo- 
nent who  never  misses  a  single  shot  in  the 
round.  A  careful  study  of  the  best  courses 
in  Great  Britain  will  show  that  the  number 
of  holes  measuring  from  two  hundred  and 
forty  to  three  hundred  yards  are  exceed- 
ingly rare;  in  other  words,  the  rule  referred 
to  above  is  the  one  essential  toward  excel- 
lence. 

As  for  the  hazards,  they  should  be  sand- 
bunkers,  as  far  as  possible.  Sand  should  be 
procured,  even  at  a  considerable  cost,  be- 
cause there  is  no  other  kind  of  hazard  that 
answers  the  purpose  so  well.  They  should 
be  of  such  a  nature  that  a  good  player 
can  always  extricate  himself  from  the  diffi- 
culty in  one  stroke,  and  they  should,  above 
all  things,  be  varied  in  their  construction. 

The  everlasting  line  of  cops  seen  on  so 
many  of  our  inland  courses  are  both  an 
offence  to  the  eye  and  to  the  intelligence. 

141 


Golf 

The  difficulties  thrown  in  the  path  of  a 
discriminating  golfer  should  be  of  a  far 
more  subtle  nature.  In  driving  off  the  tee, 
it  is  generally  well  to  have  something  in 
front  to  catch  a  missed  ball,  and  the  haz- 
ard ought  to  be  large  and  well-defined;  a  lit- 
tle ditch  at  one  hundred  and  tw^enty  yards 
distance  is  not  nearly  sufficient,  because  it 
punishes  only  a  few  out  of  the  many  bad 
shots.  If  possible,  the  hazard  should  extend 
in  many  cases  over  the  whole  distance  be- 
tween the  tee  and  the  carry  of  a  moderate 
drive.  Then,  as  regards  the  hazards  near 
the  putting-green,  particular  care  should 
be  taken  to  have  them  placed  in  various 
shapes  and  positions.  A  single  bastion  in 
front  of  every  hole  is  more  often  an  aid  to 
success  than  a  ground  for  misfortune ;  it  is 
an  easy  guide  to  the  eye,  and  induces  a 
player  to  be  bold  in  his  approach,  —  a  qual- 
ity in  which  he  is  often  deficient.  Hazards 
should  be  placed  on  every  side  of  the  hole, 
more  especially  beyond  it,  so  that  every 
approach  may  call  for  careful  calculation. 
Finally,  let  me  repeat,  that  trees  and  stones 
must,  at  all  costs,  be  removed;  and  the  re- 
quirements of  a  good  golf-course  will  have 
been  fairly  stated. 

When  we  have  arrived  at  such  a  measure 
of  excellence  as  this,  the  difficulties  of  the 

142 


Golf 

rules  and  regulations  of  the  game  will  be- 
gin to  solve  themselves.  The  United  States 
Golf  Association,  for  instance,  passed  a  rule 
permitting  a  player  in  a  match  to  lift  his 
ball  out  of  any  difficulty  at  the  penalty  of 
two  strokes.  Now,  this  was  in  direct  op- 
position to  the  original  idea  of  the  game 
that  the  ball  should  always  be  played  under 
any  circumstances,  or  else  the  hole  should 
be  given  up.  The  excuse  for  the  change 
made  by  the  Executive  Committee  was 
that  there  were  many  courses  in  the  coun- 
try where  conditions  were  different,  and 
where  it  would  often  be  impossible  to  hit 
the  ball  at  all.  The  answer  to  such  an 
argument  is  apparent.  Such  a  course  is 
not  fit  for  the  proper  exercise  of  the  game, 
and  ought  not  to  be  admitted  to  member- 
ship in  the  Association.  Although  it  is 
impossible  always  to  reproduce  the  perfect 
turf  and  bracing  sea  air  of  the  Scotch  links, 
it  is  quite  feasible  to  lay  out  a  course  in 
such  a  way  that  it  may  be  as  good  a  test 
as  possible  of  proficiency  in  the  game. 
Take,  for  instance,  the  Chicago  Golf  Club 
links  at  Wheaton.  The  course  has  been  in 
existence  only  two  years;  and  yet  when  a 
few  additional  bunkers  are  finished,  which 
are  at  present  under  construction,  it  will 
present  as  fair  a  field  for  the  settling  of 

M3 


Golf 


rival  claims  as  any  links  outside  of  the  first 
half  dozen  or  so  in  Great  Britain.  Of 
course  the  quality  of  soil  is  different  from 
that  of  St.  Andrews  or  Prestwick,  but  the 
turf  is  excellent;  a  good  drive  is  hardly 
ever  punished  by  a  bad  lie  ;  the  hazards 
are  of  the  proper  sort,  chiefly  consisting  of 
sand-bunkers,  with  an  occasional  water- 
jump;  and,  above  all,  there  are  no  trees, 
stones,  or  buildings  on  the  course.  The 
holes  are  laid  out  in  such  a  way  as  to  elim- 
inate as  far  as  possible  the  element  of 
chance;  and,  taking  it  all  in  all,  it  is  prob- 
ably the  only  eighteen-hole 
course  in  the  country  which 
can  compare  with  the 
best  links  abroad. 
I  state  this,  not  as  a 
matter  of  prejudice, 
but  because  it  is 
an  incontroverti- 
ble fact,  and  one 
which  should 
be  taken  into 
consideration 
by  all  green- 
committees; 
for  it  is  a 
simple  proof 
A  Foozle.    ~  that    nearly 


144 


Golf 


all  the  Eastern  courses  could  be  improved 
to  a  similar  extent  by  keeping  the  true 
ideal  constantly  in  view. 

The  rules  of  golf  have  always  presented 
a  difficulty  to  those  who  are  intrusted  with 
the  care  of  framing  them ;  and  since  there 
are  many  points  under  discussion  at  the 
present  moment  of  writing,  it  will  be  well 
to  take  only  a  general  view  of  the  case.  It 
is  quite  certain  that  many  of  the  existing 
regulations  as  they  stand  are  faulty,  chiefly 
because,  while  they  have  the  right  aim  in 
view,  they  leave  so  much  ground  for  argu- 
ment and  discussion;  and  it  is  equally  cer- 
tain that  before  long  the  American  golfers, 
who  are  not  bound  hand  and  foot  by  tra- 
dition, will  introduce  one  or  two  remedial 
measures  which  will  incense  the  conserva- 
tive Briton,  but  will  probably  aid  the  true 
development  of  the  game.  Already  an  ex- 
cellent innovation,  for  which  the  United 
States  Association  is  responsible,  is  the 
method  of  deciding  the  Amateur  Cham- 
pionship. It  was  considered  a  great  step 
in  the  right  direction  when  the  competi- 
tion by  holes  was  first  introduced  into  Great 
Britain  ;  not  by  a  Scotch  club,  but  by  the 
green-committee  of  Hoylake  in  England. 
Since  the  hole  game  is  the  only  true  golf, 
it  seemed  a  pity  that  the  Amateur  Cham- 
ps 


Golf 

pionship  should  be  decided  in  any  other 
way.  A  difficulty,  however,  has  since 
arisen  on  account  of  the  unwieldy  size  of 
the  field,  which  threatens  to  make  the 
tournament  a  very  protracted  affair.  It 
remained  for  American  golfers  to  solve  the 
problem  by  inventing  the  dual  method  of 
play;  first  weeding  out  the  poorer  players 
by  two  rounds  of  medal  play,  and  then  se- 
lecting the  champion  by  several  rounds  of 
hole  play,  —  a  plan  which  sounds  very  ob- 
vious and  satisfactory  as  soon  as  it  is  sug- 
gested, for  it  cuts  down  the  list  of  entries 
very  quickly,  and  also  necessitates  excel- 
lence in  both  branches  of  the  game ;  and, 
after  all,  the  patience  and  accuracy  brought 
out  in  medal  play  ought  to  count  for  some- 
thing. Now,  however,  there  is  a  proposal 
to  go  still  farther  into  the  weeding-out 
process  by  fixing  a  definite  scratch  score 
for  every  Unks,  based  upon  the  distances  of 
the  holes,  and  accepting  no  entry  from  any 
one  whose  handicap  at  his  home  club  is 
above  a  certain  limit.  Whether  this  sug- 
gestion should  be  carried  out  or  not  is 
entirely  a  matter  of  expediency.  If  it  is 
found  that  so  many  entries  are  made  as  to 
seriously  militate  against  the  success  of  the 
tournament,  it  will  be  necessary  to  adopt 
some  such  scheme  for  keeping  out  all  those 

146 


Golf 

who  have  really  no  chance  of  winning,  but 
merely  enter  for  practice  or  amusement. 
The  national  tournament  is  not  a  nursery 
for  embryo  golfers,  nor  is  it  fair  that  a 
good  player  should  be  handicapped  by 
having  to  go  through  the  preliminary 
rounds  with  a  duffer  who  has  not  the  ghost 
of  a  chance  of  winning.  One  of  the  argu- 
ments against  the  acceptance  of  a  definite 
scratch  based  on  distance,  is  that  it  can  be 
so  easily  obviated  by  a  slight  alteration  of 
tees,  so  as  to  make  the  score  as  high  as  pos- 
sible, and  include  a  number  of  players  who 
would  not  otherwise  have  qualified.  Still, 
it  must  be  remembered  that  it  is  always 
easy  to  defeat  the  ends  of  any  government 
for  the  time  being ;  and  a  certain  reliance 
must  be  placed  upon  green-committees  to 
do  their  best,  not  only  for  the  interests  of 
their  respective  clubs,  but  for  the  future  of 
the  game  itself  In  this  matter  of  qualifi- 
cation, experience  alone  will  show  whether 
a  new  regulation  is  necessary  or  not ;  but 
as  a  general  principle  it  ought  to  be  re- 
membered that  golf  is  still  a  very  new 
game  in  this  country,  and  the  would-be 
iconoclasts  should  be  discouraged  from 
taking  any  premature  action  which  would 
alienate  us  from  golfers  on  the  other  side 
of  the  Atlantic  in  the  meantime,  and  in 

147 


GolJ 

the  long  run  prove  to  be  quite   unneces- 
sary. 

Those  who  look  for  instruction  in  the 
science  of  golf  must  turn  to  the  pages  of 
the  Badminton  book,  which  is  still  the  high- 
est authority  on  the  subject ;  but  it  may 
not  be  out  of  place  to  throw  out  a  few  sug- 
gestions as  to  the  spirit  in  which  the  book 
should  be  read.  It  must  be  remembered, 
in  the  first  place,  that  nearly  all  the  men 
who  have  taken  up  the  game  in  America 
of  recent  years  have  reached  an  age  when 
it  is  impossible  to  acquire  the  easy  supple- 
ness of  youth.  They  ought,  accordingly, 
to  modify  the  instructions  which  come  to 
them,  not  only  from  the  literature  upon  the 
subject,  but  from  many  of  the  professional 
teachers,  who  always  seem  to  forget  that 
their  pupils  have  not  had  the  same  advan- 
tages in  early  youth  as  themselves.  It  is 
nearly  always  wrong  for  a  grown  man  to 
attempt  a  full  swing  to  start  with.  I  have 
so  constantly  heard  the  most  promising  be- 
ginners reproached  for  what  the  conven- 
tional book-learned  player  calls  a  lack  of 
form,  that  it  seems  very  necessary  to  point 
out  that  a  short,  clean  sweep  at  the  ball  is 
not  only  far  more  effective,  but  far  better 
form,  than  the  angular  contortions  which 
go  to  make  up  what  many  beginners  are 

148 


Golf 


pleased  to  call  a  full  swing.  In  driving 
the  ball,  the  main  object  is  to  keep  the  head 
of  the  club  travelling  as  long  as  possible 
in  the  direct  line  of  flight;  and  this  must 
be  achieved,  at  first,  by  letting  the  club  go 
back  only  so  far  as  is  possible  without  mak- 
ing an  angular  bend  in  the  swing.  If  this 
steady  sweep  is  constantly  kept  in  view, 
the  beginner  will  find  that  gradually  he  is 
able  to  swing  farther  and  farther  back  as 
the  muscles  become  more  accustomed  to 
the  motion,  until  finally  he  attains  the  proud 
distinction  of  possessing  a  real  St.  Andrews 
swing.  In  all  other  things,  moreover,  he 
should  exercise  his  common-sense,  and 
make  up  his  mind  that  it  is  his  duty  to  hit 
the  ball  clean  every  time,  even  if  in  so  doing 
he  sacrifices  a  good  many  yards  in  distance. 
Above  all,  let  him  watch  the  best  players, 
and  get  into  their  style  by  unconscious  imi- 
tation. If  our  beginners  would  only  walk 
round  with  their  professional  teachers,  and 
feel,  as  it  were,  the  easy  method  of  sweep- 
ing away  the  ball,  they  would  learn  far  more 
than  they  do  in  a  hundred  verbal  lessons  ; 
and  when  they  play  they  should  always 
play  matches,  and  not  trudge  round  the 
links  with  a  pencil  and  score-card,  trying 
to  lower  a  record  of  their  own  which  is 
absolutely  meaningless.     The  young  player 

149 


Golf 

who  can  take  odds  from  his  elders  and 
betters,  and  compete  with  them  more  or 
less  successfully,  is  far  nearer  the  road  to 
grace,  although  his  total  score  should  mount 
up  ever  so  much  higher  than  the  record 
of  the  solitary  and  introspective  knight  of 
the  pencil.  Life  would  be  far  more  worth 
living  on  a  golf-links  if  there  were  a  rule 
in  every  club  forbidding  a  member  to  men- 
tion his  score,  or  talk  at  length  about  the 
lowering  of  a  record  which  nobody  but 
himself  cares  about,  and  even  he  himself 
only  half  believes  in.  The  game  was  ori- 
ginally intended  to  be  a  friendly  contest  of 
skill ;  the  middle-aged  beginner  has  made 
it  a  fruitful  source  of  lying  and  self-decep- 
tion, and  a  very  scourge  to  his  friends. 

One  word  should  be  said  about  the  cour- 
tesies of  the  game.  There  is  no  pursuit  in 
life  which  exhibits  the  best  and  the  worst  of 
a  man  so  freely  as  the  game  of  golf.  That 
a  control  of  the  temper  is  absolutely  es- 
sential for  success  goes  without  saying,  and 
there  are  many  little  points  which  suggest 
a  loss  of  that  control  if  certain  rules  of 
etiquette  are  not  strictly  observed.  The 
most  important  of  these  is  the  way  in 
which  the  rules  are  interpreted;  and  there 
seems  to  be  only  one  way  of  dealing  with 
the  matter.    First  of  all,  if  a  penalty  is  in- 

150 


Golf 

curred  for  any  reason,  the  player  should  at 
once  admit  it,  without  waiting  for  his  op- 
ponent to  call  his  attention  to  it ;  and  no 
matter  how  trifling  the  breach  of  rule,  or 
how  unimportant  the  game,  the  full  penalty 
should  be  conceded,  whether  the  opponent 
desires  it  or  not.  On  the  other  hand,  if  the 
opponent  should  move  his  ball,  —  for  in- 
stance, in  addressing  it,  —  it  is  his  business 
to  count  the  stroke,  for  stroke  it  is,  just  as 
much  as  the  longest  drive  that  was  ever 
struck  from  the  tee  ;  and,  except  when 
playing  for  a  medal,  he  should  be  left  en- 
tirely to  himself  in  the  matter.  To  put  it 
shortly,  the  word  "  claim  "  has  no  place  in 
the  golfer's  vocabulary.  It  may  be  argued, 
of  course,  that  your  opponent  may  then 
take  advantage  oi  you.  If  he  does,  your 
remedy  is  simple,  —  never  to  play  with  him 
again.  In  the  meantime,  if  every  golfer 
were  intent  upon  acting  up  to  the  very 
letter  of  the  law,  there  could  never  be 
any  possibility  of  dispute.  After  all,  it  is  a 
game  for  gentlemen ;  and,  unless  that  is 
kept  in  mind,  unpleasantness  becomes  end- 
less. Perhaps  it  is  this  very  fact  which  has 
made  it  so  popular  in  this  country,  where 
the  other  great  games  are  in  danger  of 
getting  entirely  into  the  hands  of  profes- 
sionals.    That  being  the  case,  it  is  most 

151 


Golf 


important  that  the  tendency  to  multiply 
tournaments  and  lavish  handsome  trophies 
on  indifferent  players  should  be  checked 
at  the  outset  of  our  golfing  history.  Ten 
years  ago  the  best  players  in  the  world 
were  content  with  the  custody  of  one  or 
two  small  medals  which  they  could  not 
even  keep ;  and  I  confess  that,  in  the  best 
interests  of  the  game,  I  wish  the  same 
state  of  things  existed  now.  Possibly  we 
shall  have  a  revulsion  of  feeling  in  a  short 
time,  and  golf  will  take  on  again  its  garb 
of  Caledonian  simplicity. 


u 


OFTHSE 

NIVERSITY 


LAWN    TENNIS 


By    Robert    D.    Wrenn 

{Champion  of  the  United  States,  1896.) 


Fore-hand  Volley. 

HOUGH  the  tennis  enthu- 
siast is  loath  to  admit  the 
fact,  it  must  be  conceded 
that  during  the  last  two 
years  lawn  tennis  has  not 
held  its  own  in  this  coun- 
try, or,  in  fact,  abroad.  If  we  look  into 
the  reasons  for  this  temporary  falling  off 
in  popularity  of  a  game  which  has  hither- 
to been  in  such  favor,  we  are  brought  face 
to  face  with  golf  and  cycling.  It  may 
not  be  out  of  place  to  state  here  that  the 
American  is,  above  everything,  fond  of 
innovations;  so  no  sooner  was  the  game 

155 


Law?t   Tennis 

of  golf  fairly  introduced  from  England, 
than  rackets  were  stored  away  to  give 
place  to  the  new  fad.  Understand,  I  do 
not  decry  golf:  it  has  come  to  this  coun- 
try to  stay,  and  is  deservedly  popular;  but 
I  do  feel,  and  feel  strongly,  that  once 
the  novelty  of  the  game  has  worn  off, 
there  will  be  a  return  to  the  ranks  of 
tennis  by  the  many  who  care  for  a  keener 
form  of  exercise  than  the  golf  course 
permits.  Cycling,  too,  for  the  time  be- 
ing has  made  inroads  on  tennis,  allow- 
ing to  a  part  of  the  public,  at  least,  no 
leisure  for  other  sport.  However,  even 
with  such  formidable  rivals  in  the  field, 
we  are  bound  to  preserve  a  game  which 
embodies  so  many  good  qualities ;  and 
surely  no  one  will  gainsay  that,  as  a  health- 
ful form  of  exercise  which  puts  in  use 
every  muscle  of  the  body  without  an  in- 
jurious strain  ;  as  a  school  of  training  for 
nerve,  judgment,  and  quick  thought ;  and 
finally  as  a  sport  which  generates  the 
keenest  spirit  of  rivalry,  tennis  has  no 
superior. 

While  tennis  may  have  lost  ground  in 
the  public  eye,  if  we  follow  the  develop- 
ment of  the  game  in  this  country,  there  is 
a  gratifying  advancement  to  be  noted  along 
many  lines.     It  is  true  we  have  not  reached 

156 


Lawfi   Tennis 


The  Smash 


157 


Lawn   Ttnnis 


the  proficiency  of  our  English  cousins  — 
that  is  but  natural  considering  their  long 
schooling  in  the  game ;  then,  too,  the 
English  season  is  longer  not  only  in  months, 
but  in  the  hours  of  each  day,  and  where 
we  can  devote  one  hour  to  practice,  the 
average  Englishman  can  devote  three.  An- 
other advantage  to  our  rivals  lies  in  the 
fact  that  they  keep  up  their  game  to  a 
much  greater  age  than  we  do.  It  has  al- 
ways seemed  a  pity  that  so  many  of  the 
best  players  we  have  produced  have  re- 
tired from  the  game  at  an  age  when  they 
should  be  in  their  prime.  Our  business 
requirements  are  in  a  measure  responsible 
for  this ;  but  it  is  a  fallacy  to  contend 
that  once  in  business,  there  is  no  possibility 
of  holding  top  form.  What  we  need  is 
a  longer  tennis  life  in  this  country  —  if 
the  expression  can  be  used.  In  England 
a  player  is  almost  always  improving  until 
he  is  thirty,  and  frequently  after  that  age. 
Take  the  case  of  Dr.  Pim,  champion  of 

England  in  1895.  ^^  ^^^  ^^^X  ^^  ^^  ^S^ 
of  thirty-four  that  he  won  his  coveted  ti- 
tle, after  years  of  defeats. 

Notwithstanding  the  drawbacks  just  enu- 
merated, we  are  certainly  closing  up  the  gap 
which  has  separated  us  from  the  best  of  the 
English  field  of  players.     W.  A.  Larned's 

158 


Lawn   Tennis 


Fore-handed  Service. 


record  abroad  during  the  past  season  is 
a  convincing  proof  of  this.  While  it  is 
true  that  he  won  none  of  the  larger  tour- 
naments, his  matches  were  a  succession  of 
close  fights  which  brought  him  tv^^ice  to 
the  final  round,  and  reflected  the  greatest 
credit  on  his  play.      We  are  indebted  to 

159 


Lawn  Tennis 


Athene  Over-hand  Service. 


the  courtesy  of  the  English  official  rank- 
ing committee  for  including  Mr.  Larned's 
name  in  its  classification  of  players,  and 
thus  giving  us  a  line  of  comparison  be- 
tween the  best  men  in  each  country. 
When  it  is  considered  that  in  all  England 


i6o 


Lawn   Tennis 


he  was  ranked  sixth,  in  a  class  just  after 
the  three  leaders,  there  is  cause  for  con- 
gratulation. We  have  here  the  natural  de- 
duction that  the  general  standard  of  play 
of  our  "  first  ten "  is  very  close  to  that 
of  the  corresponding  class  in  England;  for 
though  Mr.  Larned's  all-around  game  was 
probably  the  best  in  this  country  last  year, 
there  were  four  or  five  others  who  were 
nearly  even  with  him,  and  could,  there- 
fore, have  made  a  creditable  showing  on 
the  other  side.  And  right  here  a  word 
of  patriotic  vanity!  It  seems  to  me  that 
the  American  is  cut  out  for  a  better  ten- 
nis player  than  his  English  rival.  It  is 
proverbial  that  he  has  more  energy  and 
zest,  —  two  important  factors  in  the  ne- 
cessary make-up ;  and  when  by  longer  ex- 
perience he  has  acquired  a  steadiness  and 
coolness  at  critical  times,  and  lost  a  little 
of  his  desire  to  win  points  too  quickly,  he 
should  make  the  better  player. 

Now  a  word  on  the  game  itself. 

Tennis  offers  a  certain  liberty  in  style  of 
play  that  is  apt  to  be  abused.  I  point  par- 
ticularly to  the  **  net  "  and  '*  back-court  '' 
games,  which  have  become  so  distinctly 
separated  of  late  years.  The  former  name 
is  applied  to  those  players  who  make  the 
majority  of  their  strokes  from  a  position  in 

i6i 


Lawft  Tennis 


End  of  Under-kafid  Twist  Service. 


the  court  between  the  receiving-hne  and 
the  net ;  or,  in  other  words,  a  net  player 
is  one  who  makes  it  an  object  to  reach  the 
net  at  every  opportunity,  in  order  to  "  vol- 

162 


Lawn  Ttnnis 


ley"  his  returns.  In  the  "back-court" 
game,  as  the  name  implies,  the  returns  are 
made  from  far  back  in  the  court,  and  of 
course  "off  the  ground;  "  i.e.,  after  the  ball 
has  bounced  once.  I  speak  of  abuse  with 
reference  to  these  two  distinct  styhs,  be- 
cause instead  of  allowing  one  to  aid  and 
abet  the  other,  there  is  a  tendency  among 


Fore-hand  Stroke. 
163 


Lawn  'JtHtat 


our  leading  players  to  choose  one  method, 
to  the  partial,  or  even  entire,  exclusion  of 
the  other.  If  beginners  would  bear  in 
mind  that  a  net  game  is  perfected  only 
when  it  is  backed  up  by  accurate  back- 
court  work,  and  vice  versa,  a  much  more 
rapid  improvement  could  be  counted  on. 

It  is  but  natural  that  as  success  attends 
one  line  of  play,  we  are  tempted  to  overdo 
it,  forgetting  that  by  too  constant  use  we 
teach  an  opponent  what  to  expect,  thereby 
weakening  our  game. 

As  the  first  exponent  of  the  net  game 
in  this  country,  O.  S.  Campbell  made  his 
mark ;  and  it  is  to  his  remarkable  profi- 
ciency in  this  department  that  he  owes  his 
three  successive  championships  of  1890, 
I  891,  and  1892.  Since  that  time  his  fol- 
lowing has  been  large;  though  no  one,  bar- 
ring C.  B.  Neel,  has  carried  his  methods  to 
such  an  extreme.  When  Neel  appeared 
before  the  Eastern  public  for  the  first  time 
at  Newport  in  1895,  comparatively  un- 
known and  certainly  underrated,  his  easy 
defeat  of  M.  G.  Chace  —  who  with  R.  L. 
Stevens  ranked  as  the  best  back-court  player 
in  America  —  was  a  great  surprise.  It 
was  volley  against  ground  stroke  through- 
out,—  a  test,  as  it  were,  of  the  two  schools, 
and  for  that  reason  aroused  much  interest, 

164 


Lawn   Tennis 


End  of  a  Back-hand  Stroke,  off  the  Ground. 


Though  Chace  hardly  held  to  the  game 
he  is  capable  of,  the  persistent  and  untir- 
ing returns  of  his  opponent,  whether  from 
a  lob  or  a  side-line  drive,  were  in  great 
measure  responsible  for  his  "  falling  off." 
To  play  well  at  the  net,  one  must  think 
and  act  simultaneously  ;  there  is  no  time 
for  cool  consideration,  or  even  the  frac- 
tion of  a  second's  grace  accorded  to  the 
back-court  player  as  the  ball  rises  from 
the  ground.      If  the  chance  presents  itself, 

165 


Lawn   Tennis 


through  the  weak  return  of  an  opponent, 
the  ball  must  be  ''killed,"  or  cut  to  the  side 
line  with  such  nicety  that  there  is  no  pos- 
sibility of  a  return.  This  latter  stroke  is 
effected  with  a  quick  wrist  movement,  re- 
quiring not  so  much  strength  as  delicacy, 
and  only  acquired  by  long  practice.  Our 
double  champions  in  1894,  C.  Hobart  and 
F.  H.  Hovey,  are  past-masters  of  this  art, 
which  makes  their  game  a  brilliant  one  to 
watch. 

Opposed  to  the  class  of  volleyers,  R.  L. 
Stevens  stands  out  prominently  at  the  head 
of  the  back-court  players.  Within  the  last 
year  he  has  not  kept  so  rigorously  to  the 
base  line,  but  it  is  only  on  rare  occasions 
that  he  approaches  the  net.  By  his  won- 
derful accuracy  and  steadiness  he  is  enabled 
to  meet  on  equal  terms  the  best  net  play- 
ers this  country  has  produced ;  but  his  is 
the  exceptional  case.  M.  G.  Chace,  too, 
is  essentially  a  back-court  player ;  but  he 
varies  his  brilliant  low  drives  from  the  base 
line  with  now  and  then  a  rally  at  the  net. 
In  the  judgment  of  Dr.  Pim  and  Mr.  Ma- 
honey,  who  spent  a  part  of  the  1895  season 
in  this  country,  M.  G.  Chace's  game  showed 
possibilities  above  anything  they  had  met 
with.  Certain  it  is,  that  for  good  form, 
endurance,  and  accuracy  he  is  remarkable. 

166 


Lawn  Tennis 

Second  only  to  him  in  these  characteristics 
comes  G.  L.  Wrenn,  whose  game  promises 
much  for  the  future. 

In  the  base-Hne  game,  a  steady  ground 
stroke  fore-  and  back-handed  is  indispen- 
sable. One  must  be  able  to  "  cross-court  " 
or  drive  down  the  line  at  will.  Much  of 
the  success  of  these  strokes  depends  upon 
the  rapidity  with  which  they  are  executed ; 


The  Cut. 
167 


Lawn  Tennis 


Back-hand  Volley. 


for  it  is  fatal  to 
allow  an  oppo- 
nent at  the  net 
to  discover  the 
intended  direc- 
tion of  the  ball. 
The  lob  also 
is  an  important 
factor  in  the 
make-up  of  back-play.  Until  recent  years 
this  method  of  tossing  a  ball  high  in  the 
air  over  an  opponent's  head  was  rele- 
gated almost  entirely  to  defensive  tactics ; 
it  was  valuable  only  as  an  escape  from  an 
awkward  position,  or  to  gain  time  for  a 
short  breathing-spell,  but  now  it  embraces 
new  functions,  which  have  brought  it  to 
the  front  as  a  strong  offensive  stroke.  As 
a  means  of  tiring  out  an  opponent,  it  has 

i68 


^ 


"--p- 


3i 


S>^-'-%j; 


^awH  1  emits 


been  tried  in  long  matches  with  surprising 
results ;  and  though  this  sounds  like  a  nega- 
tive sort  of  praise,  we  may  as  well  admit 
that  the  value  of  a  stroke  is  determined  by 
its  effectiveness,  and  give  the  lob  credit  for 
what  it  accomplishes.  I  recall  at  least  three 
important  matches  during  the  last  tennis 
season  which  were  practically  won  by  sys- 
tematic lobbing. 

There  are  two  distinct  kinds  of  lobs 
which  will  bear  careful  study.  In  using 
the  first,  the  ball  is  tossed  just  high  enough 
to  be  fairly  out  of  reach  of  an  opponent 
who  has  taken  his  position  very  close  to 
the  net.  The  stroke  is  made  with  the 
idea  of  allowing  him  no  time  to  rush  back 
and  return  the  ball  as  it  bounces.  The 
second  lob  is  tossed  high  in  the  air,  —  the 
higher  the  better,  —  so  that  its  descent  will 
make  a  nearly  vertical  line.  To  "  smash  " 
such  a  ball,  even  should  it  fall  close  to  the 
net,  is  not  easy ;  while  if  it  is  placed  near 
the  base  line,  there  is  likelihood  that  it  will 
be  returned  out  of  court. 

Where  we  show  at  a  disadvantage  with 
English  players  is  in  the  back-hand  stroke. 
It  is  no  uncommon  sight,  even  in  the  Na- 
tional Championship,  to  see  a  man,  if  not 
actually  running  around  the  ball,  at  least 
so  favoring  his  back  hand  that  a  part  of 

170 


Lawn  TettHis 


his  court  is  left  unprotected.  The  mere 
fact  of  shirking  a  stroke  is  proof  of  weak- 
ness, which  will  be  taken  advantage  of  at 
once  by  a  clever  opponent. 

A  simple  practice,  which  I  have  found 
invaluable  in  improving  weak  ground 
strokes,  is  to  spend  some  half-hour  a  day 
in  batting  balls  against  an  even  wall  on 
which  a  line  has  been  marked  three  feet 
from  the  ground.      If  the  work  is  done 


Half  Volley  Backward. 
171 


Lawn  Ttnnii 


carefully,  with  the  idea  of  detecting  faults, 
I  can  guarantee  good  results. 

In  the  separate  analyses  which  I  have 
made  of  the  net  and  back-court  games,  I 
hope  that  my  main  point  will  not  be 
missed,  —  that  it  is  a  combination  of  these 
two  styles,  and  not  the  perfection  of  one 
singly,  which  is  necessary  to  the  success 
of  a  player.  Let  it  be  remembered  that 
a  good  all-around  game  will  win  where 
brilliancy  in  one  department  fails. 


172 


BICYCLING 

The  Wheel  of  To  — Day 

By  Philip   G.  Hubert,  Jr. 

Woman   and  the   Bicycle 

Bv  Marguerite  Merington 

A   Doctor's  View  of  Bicycling 

By  J.    West   Roosevelt,  M,D. 


I.  TheWheel  ofTo-Day 

By  Philip   G.  Hubert,  Jr. 

ROM  the  time  of  my  early 
childhood  I  have  had  the 
notion  that  flying  must  be 
the  height  of  bliss,  and  not 
even  the  example  of  Darius 
Green  and  his  mishaps  de- 
terred me  from  an  attempt  at  a  flying- 
machine.  When  I  was  nine  years  old  I 
constructed  a  pair  of  wings.  Neverthe- 
less, like  the  small  boy  who  defined  faith 
as  *'believin'  a  thing  that  you  knew  wasn't 
true,"  I  had  faith  in  my  flying-machine, 
but  an  innate  conviction  that  it  might  not 
work.  So  I  fastened  it  to  the  arms  of  a 
younger  brother  before  pushing  him   oflT 

175 


Tht  Wheel  of  To-Day 

the  roof  of  our  woodshed.  I  had  assured 
him  that  with  those  wings  he  could  fly  in 
a  way  that  would  surprise  him.  It  did 
surprise  him.  He  came  to  the  ground  in 
a  condition  that  resulted  in  a  sound  thrash- 
ing for  me. 

Some  few  years  later,  when  in  Paris,  I 
paid  a  franc  to  see  a  flying-machine, — it 
looked  like  the  combination  of  a  washing- 
machine  and  a  windmill,  —  which  the  ven- 
erable proprietor  and  exhibitor  assured  me 
would  soar  into  the  air  like  a  bird  could 
he  but  raise  the  money  for  two  or  three 
cogwheels  and  other  trifles  still  needed  to 
perfect  the  apparatus.  That  was  a  good 
many  years  ago,  so  that  I  presume  he  never 
raised  the  money. 

Having  always  had  this  mild  mania  for 
flying,  I  was  much  impressed  a  few  years 
ago  when  some  one  said  to  me  :  ''  If  you 
want  to  come  as  near  flying  as  we  are  likely 
to  get  in  this  generation,  learn  to  ride  a 
pneumatic  bicycle."  Then  I  began  for 
the  first  time  to  take  a  serious  interest  in 
the  bicycle  upon  which  my  eldest  boy  was 
so  fond  of  scurrying  around  the  country ; 
and  to-day  I  am  only  too  willing  to  say  all 
that  I  can  in  its  favor.  When  one  begins 
to  tell  why  the  bicycle  is  one  of  the  great 
inventions  of  the  century,  it  is  hard  to  be- 

176 


The  Whtel  of  To-Day 

gin,  because  there  is  so  much  to  say.  A 
bicycle  is  better  than  a  horse  to  ninety-nine 
men  and  women  out  of  a  hundred,  because 
it  costs  almost  nothing  to  keep,  and  it  is 
never  tired.  It  will  take  one  three  times 
as  far  as  a  horse  in  the  same  number  of 
days  or  weeks.  In  touring  with  a  bicycle 
I  can  make  fifty  miles  a  day  as  comfortably 
as  twenty  miles  on  foot ;  and  I  can  carry  all 
the  clothing  I  need,  besides  a  camera  and 
other  traps.  The  exercise  is  as  invigorat- 
ing as  walking,  or  more  so,  with  the  great 
advantage  that  you  can  get  over  uninter- 
esting tracts  of  country  twice  as  fast  as  on 
foot.  In  fact,  as  any  bicyclist  knows,  walk- 
ing seems  intolerably  slow  after  the  wheel ; 
even  easy-going  tourists,  with  women  in 
the  party,  can  make  forty  miles  a  day,  and 
find  it  play.  Perhaps  even  greater  and 
more  important  than  its  use  as  a  touring- 
machine  is  the  bicycle  as  an  every-day 
help  to  mechanics,  factory  hands,  clerks, 
and  all  people  who  live  in  or  near  small 
towns.  Thanks  to  this  modern  wonder, 
they  can  live  several  miles  away  from  their 
work,  thus  getting  cheaper  rents  and  bet- 
ter surroundings  for  their  children ;  they 
can  save  car-fares,  and  get  healthful  exer- 
cise. For  the  unfortunate  dwellers  in  cities 
it  offers  recreation  after  working-hours,  and 

177 


The  VVJieel  of  To- Day 

induces  thousands  who  would  never  walk 
to  get  out  into  the  air,  and  find  out  for 
themselves  that  life  without  out-door  ex- 
ercise is  not  living. 

How  tremendous  has  been  the  change 
in  the  fortunes  of  the  nickel-plated  steed 
within  the  last  five  or  six  years  can  only 
be  realized  by  those  who  remember  the 
first  bicycle  exhibitions  of  a  few  years  ago, 
and  can  compare  them  with  the  wonderful 
show  held  last  January  (1895)  ^^  ^^  Mad- 
ison Square  Garden  in  New  York.  The 
early  shows  were  held  in  dingy  little  halls, 
and  attended  by  a  few  thousand  persons, 
who  were  looked  upon  by  the  majority  of 
other  people  as  grown-up  children.  The 
bicycle  was  still  a  toy  five  or  six  years  ago. 
Half  a  dozen  manufacturers  exhibited 
their  wares;  and  the  pneumatic  tire,  then 
a  curiosity  imported  from  England,  was 
viewed  with  interest,  but  much  doubt  as 
to  its  practical  usefulness.  The  wheel  was 
still  something  of  a  curiosity  as  a  machine 
for  grown  men ;  while  women  who  braved 
public  opinion  far  enough  to  ride  one  in 
public  were  looked  upon  with  suspicion. 

The  high  52-inch  wheel,  upon  which 
the  rider  perched  himself  at  the  risk  of 
his  neck,  was  still  the  only  one  in  com- 
mon use;  and  had  the  **  Safety ''  pattern 

178 


The   Wheel  of  To-Day 

not  appeared,  it  is  pretty  certain  that  we 
should  see  but  little  more  of  the  bicycle 
now  than  we  did  then.  When  I  look  at 
the  high  wheel  to-day  I  rather  wonder 
that  any  one  was  ever  reckless  enough  or 
skilful  enough  to  ride  it. 
It  was  a  matter  of  weeks 
to  learn  to  get  on  it  at  all, 
and  of  months  to  ride  it 
well ;  many  persons  who 
tried  gave 
it  up  after 


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The  Grand  Circle  at  Fifty-ninth  Street  and  Eighth  Avenue,  New   York. 

a  few  bad  falls.  At  best,  the  big  wheels 
of  a  few  years  ago  were  fit  only  for  ath- 
letic young  men  ;  they  were  out  of  the 
question  for  all  other  persons,  and  of  course 
for  women.  The  pneumatic  tire  has  been 
credited  with    the    rapid    growth  of  the 


179 


Tlu  Wheel  of  To-Day 


bicycle  craze,  but  the  introduction  of  the 
"  Safety  "  pattern  has  had  much  more  to 
do  with  it.  The  pneumatic  tire  adapted 
to  a  high  wheel  only  made  it  higher  and 
heavier.  When  a  wheel  was  offered  that 
any  one  —  man,  woman,  or  child  —  could 
learn  to  ride  well  inside  of  a  fortnight,  that 
exposed  the  rider  to  no  dangerous  falls 
while  learning,  and  that  possessed  all  the 
speed  oi  the  high  wheel,  with  none  of 
its  dangers,  then,  seemingly,  every  one 
began  to  talk  bicycles.  Now  no  one  is 
too  old  or  too  young  to  ride  a  ''  Safety,'' 
and  the  woman  who  objects  to  bicycling 
is  soon  likely  to  be  looked  upon  as  more 
eccentric  than  her  sister  who  skims  along 
the  road  in  bloomers. 

While  the  "  Safety ''  pattern  made  the 
bicycle  possible  to  every  one,  of  course  the 
pneumatic  tire  is  a  great  invention.  Per- 
sons who  have  never  studied  the  action  of 
this  tire  may  not  realize  that  its  purpose  is 
not  merely  to  act  as  a  spring  or  cushion, 
but  much  more.  Some  pretty  experiments 
made  this  last  winter  make  this  clear.  It 
was  shown  that  upon  a  perfectly  smooth 
board  floor  less  power  was  required  to  pro- 
pel a  steel-rimmed  wheel  than  one  with  a 
pneumatic  tire.  But  let  a  few  fine  peb- 
bles be  sprinkled  upon  the  track,  and  then 

l8o 


The  Wheel  of  To-Day 

the  power  required  for  the  steel  tire  had 
to  be  doubled,  and  even  tripled,  while  that 
for  the  pneumatic  tire  required  only  a  slight 
increase.  The  reason  is  simple  enough. 
Whenever  the  steel  rim  encounters  an  ob- 
struction the  whole  wheel  and  the  weight 
it  supports  has  to  be  lifted  in  order  to  go 
over  it ;  with  the  pneumatic  tire  the  peb- 
ble simply  makes  a  dent  in  the  soft  tire, 
which  passes  over  it  without  rising.  A 
country  road,  or  almost  any  road  except  a 
smooth  floor,  offers  to  the  wheel  a  succes- 
sion of  minute  obstacles.  The  power  re- 
quired to  haul  a  rubber-tire  vehicle  loaded 
with  300  pounds  over  a  fairly  good  gravel 
road  averages  20  pounds,  with  a  maximum 
of  26  pounds ;  with  a  steel-tired  vehicle 
on  the  same  road  the  average  was  41 
pounds  and  the  maximum  79  pounds,  or 
three  times  the  resistance  of  the  rubber 
tire.  Hence  the  remarkable  gain  in  pow- 
er as  well  as  in  comfort  effected  by  the  air 
tire.* 

At  the  show  of  last  January  every  inch 
of  space  in  the  vast  building  seemed  to  be 
utilized  for  the  display  of  bicycles,  and 
more  was  needed.  One  or  two  prominent 
manufacturers  felt  so  aggrieved  at  the  small 

*  For  a  full  report  of  these  experiments,  see  Good  Roads  for 
January,  1895. 

181 


The  Wheel  of  To-Day 

quarters  offered  them,  that  they  refused  to 
exhibit  in  the  Garden,  and  organized  shows 
of  their  own  outside.  Experts  at  figures 
estimated  that  at  least  thirty  milHon  dollars 
of  capital  were  represented.  There  were 
nearly  one  hundred  different  makes  of  bi- 
cycles shown  by  eighty  firms,  while  a  score 
of  manufacturers  exhibited  nothing  but  bi- 
cycle accessories,  such  as  tires,  saddles,  Ian- 
terns,  cyclometers,  etc.  For  a  whole  week 
the  place  was  crowded. 

Various  estimates  have  been  made  of 
the  output  oi  bicycles  for  1895,  ^^  %" 
ures  running  as  high  as  four  hundred  thou- 
sand. The  sales  of  wheels  last  year  are 
said  to  have  been  two  hundred  and  fifty 
thousand.  It  is  generally  reported  that  the 
business  has  taken  a  sudden  jump  within 
the  last  six  months,  and  almost  all  the 
manufacturers  have  been  running  their 
factories  night  and  day.  An  important 
feature  of  the  business,  from  the  manufac- 
turer's stand,  is  the  growing  export  trade 
to  Mexico  and  South  America,  and  even 
to  Europe  and  Australia.  At  a  bicycle 
tournament  held  in  the  city  of  Mexico 
last  January,  our  American  riders  carried 
off  most  of  the  prizes  ;  the  whole  popula- 
tion seemed  to  be  bitten  with  the  bicycle 
craze.     English  and  French  manufacturers 

182 


The  Wheel  of  To-Day 

have  endeavored  to  keep  our  machines  out, 
but  without  success.  The  Mexicans  found, 
as  we  have  already  found  here,  that  the 
EngHsh  standard  bicycles  are  heavier  by 
ten  pounds  than  our  own,  without  any 
compensating  advantages. 

In  one  respect  the  bicycle  show  was 
peculiar ;  all  classes  seemed  to  be  repre- 
sented. At  the  horse  show,  for  instance, 
or  the  dog  show,  the  mechanic  is  never 
seen  ;  at  the  bicycle  show  I  noticed  hun- 
dreds of  men,  evidently  prosperous  me- 
chanics, who  had  come  to  see  more  of  a 
machine  that  offered  them  at  once  econ- 
omy and  recreation,  a  healthful  exercise 
and  a  saving  of  car-fares  in  getting  to  and 
from  their  daily  work.  One  manufacturer 
to  whom  I  mentioned  this  feature  of  the 
show  said  that  bicycle-makers  were  par- 
ticularly interested  in  the  hundreds  of  bi- 
cycle agents  from  all  over  the  country  who 
came  there  every  morning,  and  who  wanted 
machines  to  sell  to  workingmen.  There 
was  not,  he  said,  a  village  of  five  hundred 
inhabitants  within  a  thousand  miles  of  New 
York  that  would  not  have  its  regular  bicy- 
cle agent  this  summer.  ''  I  really  believe," 
said  he,  a  shrewd  Yankee,  **  that  between 
electric  cars  in  cities  and  the  bicycle  in  the 
country,  the  value  of  horse-flesh  will  drop 

183 


The  Wheel  of  To-Day 

almost  to  nothing  within  the  next  twenty 
years.  The  time  is  fast  coming  when  a 
good,  serviceable  machine  will  be  sold  for 
$50,  or  less.  Already  in  every  village  and 
town  the  mechanic  and  factory  hand  goes 
to  his  work  on  his  wheel,  the  postman  takes 
his  letters  around  on  one  ;  even  the  doctor 
and  the  clergyman  make  their  rounds  on 
wheels.  It  is  far  more  than  a  recreation. 
And  these  hundreds  of  agents  all  talk  of 
the  wheel  they  are  going  to  offer  in  their 
towns,  not  as  a  sporting  machine,  but 
as  an  every-day  necessity ;  they  want  to 
know  about  the  durability  and  the  prac- 
tical work  to  be  got  out  oi  a  wheel,  and 
its  value  to  the  mechanic  and  shop-clerk." 
I  was  glad  to  find  a  manufacturer  who 
would  admit  that  we  should  some  day  get 
good  machines  for  less  than  $50.  Per- 
sonally I  am  satisfied  that  a  poor  bicycle 
is  a  most  costly  affair.  At  the  same  time, 
the  price  asked  for  the  best  machines,  al- 
though it  has  dropped  this  year  from  $150 
to  $125  for  specials,  and  from  $125  to 
1 1  GO  for  standards,  still  seems  out  of  pro- 
portion to  the  actual  cost.  It  is  said  that 
a  good  sewing-machine  costs  less  than  %  i  o 
to  make ;  and  it  is  hard  to  see  why  a 
good  bicycle  cannot  be  sold  at  a  fair  profit 
for  1 50  or  less.     Probably  when  the  sup- 

184 


The  Wheel  of  To-Day 


The  Stufi  from  iL 


ply  catches  up  with  the  demand  it  will 
be.  This  year's  cut  in  prices  is  a  promise 
of  better  things  to  come. 

Among  the  novelties  of  last  winter's 
show  the  greatest  interest  seemed  to  be 
aroused  by  the  motor  bicycle,  the  hill- 
climbing   attachments,   the   bamboo    and 

185 


The  Wheel  of  To-Day 

aluminum  frames,  and  the  tandems.  The 
motor  bicycle,  as  its  name  irnplies,  is  one 
to  which  a  hot-air  motor,  worked  by 
naphtha  or  kerosene,  is  attached.  It  has 
been  used  a  little  in  the  western  part  of 
this  State,  but  until  this  last  show  we  had 
seen  nothing  of  it  here.  In  appearance 
the  motor  bicycle  is  longer  than  the  ordi- 
nary **  Safety,"  and  its  whole  build  is 
stronger  and  more  clumsy  ;  its  frame  is 
solid,  and  its  tires  are  of  what  is  known 
as  the  Jumbo  type,  —  enormous  affairs, 
three  inches  in  diameter.  The  motor,  or 
rather  motors,  for  there  are  two,  one  on 
each  side  of  the  rear  wheel,  are  small 
enough  to  be  contained  in  brass  cylinders 
about  a  foot  long  and  four  inches  in  di- 
ameter. The  supply  of  oil  or  naphtha  is 
carried  in  a  cylinder  placed  near  the  han- 
dle-bar, from  which  the  oil  trickles  down 
to  the  motor  through  one  of  the  frame 
tubes.  The  pair  of  motors  weigh  but 
twelve  pounds,  and  are  said  to  furnish 
two-horse  power  at  an  expense  of  one 
gallon  of  oil  for  one  hundred  miles.  The 
oil  is  ignited  at  every  stroke  of  the  piston 
by  an  electric  spark.  There  are  foot- 
cranks  for  use  in  case  the  motor  should 
give  out.  The  danger  of  explosion  is 
said  to  be  nothing.      On  the  day  of  my 

i86 


the  Wheel  of  To-ba^ 

visit  the  motor  bicycle  was  not  working 
as  usual  in  the  basement,  owing  to  some 
accident.  Some  of  the  habitues  of  the 
show,  who  had  seen  the  thing  run,  told 
me  that  it  seemed  to  work  well  enough, 
but  made  a  good  deal  of  hissing  noise. 
Admitting  that  it  will  do  all  that  its  man- 
ufacturers say,  the  present  cost  will  prove 
an  obstacle  to  its  wide  introduction,  the 
cheapest  form  being  sold  at  $275,  and  an- 
other,—  a  four-wheeled  affair,  —  at  $500. 
Within  the  last  two  years  several  forms 
of  hill-climbers  have  come  into  use,  all  of 
them,  however,  constructed  upon  virtually 
the  same  principle,  —  the  introduction  of 
a  gearing  which  shall  cause  the  pedal  to 
make  fewer  revolutions  in  proportion  to 
that  of  the  driving  or  rear  wheel ;  in  other 
words,  such  devices  increase  the  leverage 
of  the  pedal.  An  old  and  experienced  bi- 
cyclist, fond  of  **  century  runs,"  or  one 
hundred  miles  at  a  stretch,  —  which  I  am 
not,  —  remarks  that  so  far  as  he  has  been 
able  to  find  out,  these  hill-climbing  devices 
work  well  enough,  but  he  doubts  their 
value.  If  the  hill  is  too  hard  to  ride 
up,  it  is  steep  enough  to  walk  up.  Any 
device  to  change  the  gearing  at  will  adds 
just  so  much  to  the  cost  and  intricacy  of 
the  machine.      I  may  add,  however,  that 

187 


The  Wheel  of  To-Day 

such  advice  may  apply  to  strong  and  sea- 
soned riders,  who  can  **  pedal  "  over  hills 
up  which  the  ordinary  bicyclist  is  obliged 
to  foot  it. 

The  much-talked-of  bamboo  and  alumi- 
num bicycles  may  come  under  the  head  of 
attempts  to  get  rid  of  weight.  In  the  bam- 
boo bicycle,  rods  of  polished  bamboo,  let 
into  aluminum  castings,  are  used  for  the 
frame  instead  of  steel ;  a  steel  wire  tight- 
ened by  nuts  runs  through  each  rod.  The 
gain  in  lightness  is  not  great,  but  the  makers 
claim  that  the  machine  runs  with  more 
elasticity.  Speaking  of  lightness,  alumi- 
num seems  likely  to  achieve  wonders  for 
the  bicycle  in  the  near  future,  provided  its 
tendency  to  corrode  under  salt  air  and  wa- 
ter can  be  corrected.  Some  of  the  light- 
weight machines  were  wonderful,  especially 
one  weighing  less  than  nine  pounds,  which 
was  ridden  at  the  show  by  a  man  weigh- 
ing more  than  two  hundred  pounds.  Five 
years  ago  the  average  weight  of  the  road  bi- 
cycle was  from  forty  to  fifty  pounds.  Now 
anything  weighing  more  than  twenty-five 
pounds  is  looked  upon  with  disfavor. 

The  tandems,  upon  which,  as  the  name 
implies,  two  riders  sit,  one  behind  the 
other,  and  the  duplex  bicycles,  in  which 
the  riders  sit  side  by  side  on  a  sort  of  tri- 

i88 


Tfu  Wheel  of  To-Day 

cycle,  were  much  in  evidence  at  the  show, 
but  do  not  seem  to  be  gaining  favor  so  fast 
as  the  single  bicycle.  The  power  used  to 
propel  the  best  form  of  tricycle  is  nearly 
three  times  that  required  for  a  bicycle,  so 
that,  even  divided  between  two  riders,  there 
is  a  loss  as  compared  to  the  bicycle.  It  is 
also  to  be  said  that  there  are  thousands  of 
miles  of  country  road  upon  which  a  bicy- 
clist can  find  a  suitable  path,  a  foot  or  two 
wide,  where  a  tricyclist  would  have  a  hard 
time  of  it.  Also,  that  where  the  road  is 
broad  and  level  enough  for  a  tricycle,  two 
bicyclists  can  run  along  side  by  side,  near 
enough  for  conversation  ;  while,  when  it 
narrows,  they  can  take  up  single  file  again. 

Of  bicycling  accessories  at  the  show 
there  was  no  end.  Good  lamps  and  cy- 
clometers may  now  be  had  for  half  what 
thev  used  to  cost.  Saddles  are  wonder- 
fully  improved,  the  newest  saddle  being 
made  of  wire  springs,  looking  like  piano 
wires,  which,  if  durable,  ought  to  be  per- 
fection, as  it  is  light,  cool,  and  yielding. 

With  regard  to  a  number  of  points  con- 
cerning the  bicycle  and  its  use,  more  can 
be  learned  in  five  minutes'  talk  with  any 
intelligent  agent  or  amateur  than  can  be 
told  here  in  many  pages.  The  height  of 
the  saddle,  the  safe  distances  for  a  begin- 

191 


The   Wheel  of  To- Day 

ner  to  attempt,  the  best  ways  of  learning 
to  ride,  depend  almost  wholly  upon  the 
rider.  Some  riders  like  a  high-geared 
wheel,  —  for  instance,  sixty-six  or  more 
inches ;  that  is  to  say,  one  in  which  every 
full  turn  of  the  pedal  is  equivalent  to  the 
revolution  of  a  wheel  sixty-six  or  more 
inches  in  diameter.  The  higher  the  gear, 
of  course,  the  more  power  required  at  the 
pedal ;  for  which  reason  the  low  gears,  not 
exceeding  sixty-three  inches,  are  best  for 
all-day  work  in  touring.  With  a  very  high 
gear  hill-climbing  is  out  of  the  question. 
Concerning  the  details  of  equipment,  — 
whether  with  a  brake  or  without,  single 
or  double  tires,  mud-guards  or  no  guards, 
metal  or  wood  rims,  rubber  or  rat-trap 
pedals,  each  rider  must  decide.  The  pres- 
ent tendency  is  to  do  away  with  every 
superfluous  ounce  of  weight,  and  brakes, 
guards,  rubber  pedals,  all  mean  weight,  and 
are  not  essentials.  The  battle  between  the 
tire-makers  as  to  the  comparative  value  of 
single  or  double  tires  is  not  over.  Both 
have  advantages.  The  double  tire,  —  one 
thin  rubber  tube  containing  the  air,  pro- 
tected by  a  stout  outer  tubing,  —  is  not  so 
easy  to  repair  as  the  single  tire,  but  neither 
is  it  so  easily  punctured.  Wooden  rims 
seem   to   be   having   the   preference   over 

192 


Tlu  Wheel  of  To-Day 

metal ;  but  some  of  the  aluminum  rims 
are  equal  to  wood  in  every  way,  and  even 
lighter. 

So  delicate  a  piece  of  machinery  as  a  bi- 
cycle of  course  needs  care.  Every  agent 
will  explain  how  it  must  be  oiled,  —  one 
oiHngto  a  hundred  miles  is  the  usual  rule, — 
and  the  chain  rubbed  with  the  mixture  of 
plumbago  and  tallow  sold  for  that  purpose. 
After  use,  the  machine  should  be  cared  for 
as  conscientiously  as  a  good  gun,  if  it  is  to 
do  its  best  work. 

To  the  beginner  in  bicycling  I  should 
like  to  say,  Beware  of  the  cheap  bicycle  ! 
I  know  of  nothing  more  disheartening  than 
to  have  a  trip,  upon  which  on^  may  have 
counted  for  weeks,  cut  short  by  the  break- 
down of  a  machine.  Of  course  accidents 
will  happen  to  the  best  of  bicycles,  but  as 
a  rule  they  are  not  serious  enough  to  ne- 
cessitate long  delays.  You  may  run  over 
a  piece  of  broken  glass  thrown  upon  the 
highway  by  some  fiend  in  human  shape, 
and  thus  puncture  your  tire ;  or  a  spoke 
may  break,  or  a  nut  work  loose.  But  in 
such  cases,  if  you  cannot  make  the  repair 
yourself, — which  usually  you  can,  —  there 
is  a  bicycle  shop  in  almost  every  village 
nowadays  where  such  things  may  be  made 
right.      But  when   the   mishap   is   due  to 

193 


The  Wheel  of  To-Day 

radical  weakness  or  bad  workmanship  in 
the  tire,  the  frame,  or  the  castings,  the 
best  thing  to  do  is  either  to  sell  the  ma- 
chine for  what  it  will  bring,  or  never  ven- 
ture more  than  ten  miles  away  from  home. 
I  once  made  the  blunder  of  getting  a  cheap 
bicycle  for  my  boy.  No  one  would  im- 
agine that  a  bicycle  could  have  so  many 
failings  as  that  one  developed.  Its  maker's 
motto  might  have  been,  *'  For  Repairs 
Only."  It  was  a  fortune  to  the  man 
who  repaired  it.  As  fast  as  one  break 
was  patched  up  another  appeared.  Several 
most  promising  expeditions  were  broken 
up  by  the  failure  of  that  rotten  machine. 
One  day  we  started  off,  my  boy  and  I,  to 
ride  from  Stamford,  Conn.,  to  New  Lon- 
don, by  way  of  Long  Island,  crossing  the 
Sound  at  Bridgeport.  It  was  a  week's  trip 
that  we  had  planned  for  months,  and  we 
got  lots  of  pleasure  out  of  the  planning 
and  anticipation.  In  fact,  all  the  pleasure 
we  got  out  of  the  trip  was  of  this  kind. 
Our  start  was  a  delightful  one,  early  on  a 
lovely  June  morning  when  it  was  a  pleas- 
ure to  breathe,  to  say  nothing  of  riding  a 
bicycle.  Through  Darien  and  Norwalk 
we  pushed  gayly  on,  counting  upon  reach- 
ing Bridgeport,  a  distance  of  twenty-five 
miles,  before  the  noonday  sun  got  a  chance 

194 


The  Wheel  of  To-Day 

at  us.  For  perhaps  the  tenth  time  I  ex- 
claimed that  a  bicycle  tour  was  one  of  the 
joys  of  life,  when,  Bang  !  — like  the  explo- 
sion of  a  pistol,  the  rear  tire  of  my  boy's 
wheel  burst.  He  had  run  over  no  glass 
or  nails ;  the  tire  had  simply  exploded  in 
a  long  slit  with  which  we  could  do  noth- 
ing. That  was  the  end  of  our  expedition. 
We  got  the  wheel  to  the  next  town,  where 
an  expert  told  us  that  he  could  mend  the 
break,  but  that  the  same  thing  would  hap- 
pen again  in  an  hour.  The  tire  was  sim- 
ply too  cheap  or  rotten  for  the  work. 

There  are  people  who  declare  that  there 
is  a  certain  maliciousness  about  a  bicycle's 
behavior  nothing  short  of  the  miraculous. 
Doubtless  we  riders  all  remember  the  de- 
light every  bicycle  takes  in  guiding  the 
beginner  straight  toward  any  big  bowlder 
that  may  be  in  sight ;  the  road  may  be 
fifty  feet  wide,  and  that  the  only  bowlder 
within  half  a  mile,  but  do  what  we  may, 
the  bicycle  makes  unerringly  for  that  stone, 
even  if  it  takes  us  twenty  feet  out  of  our 
way  to  do  it.  And  if  there  is  anything 
the  bicycle  likes  better  than  a  big,  sharp 
bowlder,  it  is  a  deep  puddle.  A  muddy 
hole  of  any  kind  is  a  perfect  magnet  to 
the  bicycle  when  ridden  by  a  beginner. 
Experts  insist  that  the  beginner's  own  ner- 

195 


The   Wheel  of  To- Day 

vous  fear  is  at  the  bottom  of  such  mishaps, 
but  the  beginner  knows  better. 

A  strong  confirmation  of  the  theory  that 
credits  bicycles  with  innate  viciousness  is 
to  be  found  in  the  fact  that  when  bicycles 
do  break  down  it  is  always  just  where 
the  accident  will  give  the  rider  the  utmost 
trouble.  In  my  time  I  have  had  a  good 
many  annoying  accidents  happen  to  my  bi- 
cycles, but  never  within  a  mile  or  two  of 
home.  I  could  ride  my  wheel  over  broken 
glass  and  tin  cans  all  summer  if  only  I  kept 
near  home.  But  let  me  decide  upon  a 
touring-trip,  and  start  off,  —  unless  I  have 
a  really  first-class  machine,  something  is 
sure  to  happen.  In  the  course  of  one 
short  tour  last  summer  I  was  unlucky 
enough  to  break  one  of  the  frame-bars 
the  second  day  out,  and  the  pedal-crank 
the  third  day.  The  frame  I  patched  up 
with  the  aid  of  some  wire  and  a  friendly 
blacksmith.  The  pedal-crank,  a  piece  of 
steel,  could  not  be  fixed.  And  of  course 
that  crank  broke  when  I  was  fifteen  miles 
from  a  railway  station,  in  a  forsaken  dis- 
trict near  Salem,  back  of  New  London. 
There  was  a  flaw  in  the  casting.  It  was 
the  hottest  day  of  a  hot  summer,  —  July 
20,  —  and  the  accident  happened  about 
noon,  the  hottest  part  of  the  day.      It  is 

196 


The  IVheel  of  To-Day. 


At  the  Michaux  Club,  New  York. 


The  Wheel  of  To-Day 


bad  enough  to  know  that  you  will  have 
to  give  up  your  trip,  for  a  new  crank-bar 
takes  time  to  get.  It  is  worse  to  have  to 
trundle  a  wrecked  machine  for  miles,  stop- 
ping at  every  farmhouse,  like  Mr.  Pick- 
wick with  his  balky  horse,  to  ask  for  help. 
Finally,  after  risking  sunstroke  for  an  hour 
or  two,  I  found  a  boy  who  drove  me  to  New 
London,  reaching  there  after  six  o'clock. 
I  never  swear  ;  if  I  did,  it  would  be  upon 
such  an  occasion,  when  a  rascally  manu- 
facturer sells  something  that  will  not  do 
the  work  it  is  bought  to  do.  That  one  or 
two  such  experiences  do  not  disgust  one 
forever  with  bicycling  shows  the  charm  of 
the  thing.  A  poor  bicycle  is  a  most  costly 
investment. 

In  the  manufacturing  town  where  I  live 
in  winter,  I  know  scores  of  men  who  get 
pleasure  and  profit  out  of  their  bicycles  by 
riding  to  and  from  their  work ;  and  I  know, 
also,  that  there  are  thousands  of  city  men 
and  women  who  delight  in  spinning  along 
the  asphalt  pavement  of  the  boulevards 
after  the  day's  office-work  is  done.  Such 
use  of  the  bicycle  is  well  enough  so  far  as 
it  goes;  but  for  those  who  can  make  the 
opportunity,  the  greatest  boon  the  machine 
offers  is  the  possibility  of  roaming  over 
much  interesting  country  at  small  expense. 

199 


The  Wheel  of  To-Day 

Take,  for  instance,  the  usual  fortnight's 
vacation  of  most  city  men,  and  see  what 
may  be  accompHshed  with  the  aid  of  a 
good  bicycle.  In  a  fortnight,  if  the  rider 
has  kept  himself  in  good  condition  by 
practice  after  business  hours,  he  can  make 
a  distance  of  six  hundred  miles  with  ease, 
more  than  twice  what  he  could  do  on  foot, 
or  even  with  a  horse,  and  at  no  more  ex- 
pense than  on  a  walking-tour.  If  he  is  a 
member  of  the  League  of  American  Wheel- 
men, a  privilege  costing  but  a  dollar  a  year, 
he  will  be  able  to  get  lower  hotel  rates  than 
the  rest  of  the  world.  This  League,  by 
the  way,  publishes  the  best  maps  for  tour- 
ing that  we  have,  giving  an  account  of  the 
condition  of  the  various  roads  a  bicyclist 
may  take  in  travelling  from  one  place  to 
another,  with  a  list  of  the  hotels  where  he 
may  expect  a  welcome  at  reduced  rates. 

Six  hundred  miles  in  a  fortnight  is  about 
as  much  as  most  people  will  want  to  make 
for  pleasure.  It  is  possible  to  ride  one  hun- 
dred miles  in  a  day,  and  experts  will  keep 
this  rate  up  for  a  week  at  a  time.  My  own 
practice  when  touring  is  to  get  off  as  early 
in  the  morning  as  possible,  and  yet  not  too 
early  to  get  a  good  breakfast.  I  ride  at 
about  six  miles  an  hour,  seldom  more  than 
that  unless  I  am  in  a  hurry,  getting  off  to 


The  Wheel  of  To-Day 

walk  up  all  hills  that  deserve  the  name, 
and  stopping  to  pick  a  flower  or  admire  a 
view  whenever  the  spirit  prompts. 

By  starting  at  seven  o'clock,  which  is 
not  an  early  hour  in  summer,  —  six  o'clock 
is  better,  —  I  have  made  my  thirty  miles 
at  noon.  During  the  morning  I  am  pretty 
sure  to  pass  a  baker's  shop  where  good 
things  are  on  view ;  and  I  buy  some  rolls 
or  crackers,  carrying  the  bag  with  me  un- 
til I  come  to  some  quiet  nook,  the  bank 
of  a  stream  by  preference,  where  I  can 
wash,  eat  my  luncheon,  take  a  look  at  the 
morning  paper  bought  in  the  last  village, 
and  smoke  a  pipe.  The  noon  stop  does 
not  last  more  than  an  hour.  By  one  o'clock 
I  am  a-wheel  again,  and  ready  for  the  three 
hours'  run  that  will  finish  my  fifty  miles  at 
four  o'clock,  when,  if  my  route  is  rightly 
planned,  I  ought  to  reach  some  town  or 
village  where  I  find  a  suitable  hotel.  Once 
there,  I  put  on  fresh  underclothes,  the  soiled 
clothes  of  the  ride  going  to  the  laundress  to 
be  washed  out  at  once ;  and  I  am  ready  for 
an  inspection  of  the  town  at  the  pleasant- 
est  hour  of  the  day,  —  when  the  sun  gets 
low,  and  every  one  turns  out  for  a  breath 
of  air.  And,  no  matter  what  the  heat,  I 
am  ready  for  the  best  dinner  that  mine  host 
can  offer,  and  a  good  night's  sleep.     Such 


The   Wheel  of  To-Day 

touring  need  not  cost  more  than  two  dol- 
lars a  day  for  each  person. 

I  know  that  some  men,  fond  of  touring, 
adopt  a  wholly  different  plan,  —  they  ride 
early  in  the  morning  and  late  in  the  after- 
noon, taking  a  long  rest  in  some  shady  nook 
during  the  heat  of  the  day.  For  several 
reasons,  and  after  trying  both  ways,  I  pre- 
fer to  make  my  day's  journey  in  practically 
one  stretch.  In  the  first  place,  on  account 
of  clothing.  Except  in  really  cold  weather 
the  bicyclist  is  pretty  sure  to  find  himself 
covered  with  dust  and  bathed  in  perspi- 
ration at  the  end  of  his  morning's  ride. 
Therefore,  if  a  stop  of  several  hours  is  to 
be  made,  he  must  change  clothing  by  the 
roadside,  and  either  wash  it  out  himself  in 
some  stream,  or  carry  it  with  him  till  night. 
He  must  take  it  off,  or  he  will  catch  cold, 
sitting  and  sleeping  in  the  shade.  In  the 
next  place,  unless  he  knows  the  road  ex- 
actly, and  the  distance  he  has  to  make,  he 
will  feel  more  or  less  hurried  ;  the  chances 
are  two  to  one  that  he  will  arrive  at  his 
stopping-place  covered  with  dust,  his  sec- 
ond suit  of  underclothes  soaked  in  perspi- 
ration, late  for  dinner,  and  too  tired  to  en- 
joy it.  By  the  time  he  has  washed  and 
dressed,  dined  or  supped,  he  is  too  tired  to 
look  about  the  town,  which  may  be  well 


The   Wheel  of  To-Day 

worth  the  attention ;  and  he  thus  loses 
what  to  me  is  one  of  the  pleasures  of  my 
trips,  —  the  stroll  along  streets  that  are  new 
to  me,  and  the  sight  of  hundreds  of  strange 
and  sometimes  pretty  faces.  To  wander 
around  a  quaint  New  England  town  wholly 
new  to  me,  to  watch  the  shopkeepers  light 
up  their  wares  for  the  evening,  to  see  the 
life  and  brightness  of  the  place  as  the  elec- 
tric lights  burst  forth,  and  the  streets  fill 
with  people,  —  all  the  people  in  these 
small  towns  seem  to  do  their  shopping 
in  the  evening, —  and  perhaps  to  end  by  a 
visit  to  the  local  theatre,  —  all  this  consti- 


Tea  at  the  Michaux  Cbib. 
203 


Tlie  Wheel  of  To-Day 

tutes  a  feature  of  a  tour  that  I  prize.  Or 
I  may  go  to  church.  In  either  theatre 
or  church  you  may  see  the  people  of  the 
town  face  to  face,  and  learn  more  about 
them  than  by  days  of  loitering  in  their 
streets. 

A  friend  with  whom  I  once  made  a  bi- 
cycle tour  believes  that  the  expense  of  such 
trips  could  be  much  reduced  by  eliminating 
the  hotel,  and  camping  out.  His  plan  ne- 
cessitates the  carriage  of  some  sort  of  tent, 
cooking  utensils,  and  food  to  last  for  a  meal 
or  two.  I  have  never  tried  it,  but  may  do 
so  this  summer.  We  propose  to  use  a  light 
drill  for  tent  material,  the  two  bicycles 
forming  the  ridge-pole,  and  the  tent  be- 
ing thus  not  more  than  three  feet  high,  a 
mere  covered  hole  to  crawl  into  when  bed- 
time comes.  Aluminum  cooking  utensils 
might  be  used.  Firewood  may  be  found 
anywhere.  If  cooking  is  out  of  the  ques- 
tion, owing  to  the  weight  of  the  apparatus, 
it  would  be  easy  to  buy  one's  meals  in  the 
villages.  The  objections  to  this  scheme 
are  apparent ;  and  except  to  show  upon 
how  few  cents  a  day  one  may  enjoy  the 
pleasures  of  travel,  I  hav?  my  doubts  about 
it.  To  make  a  comfortable  bed  on  the 
ground  will  require  much  clothing,  which 
again  means  weight.     There  is  also   the 

204 


TJie  Wheel  of  To-Day 


danger  of  catching  cold,  the  difficulty  of 
getting  washing  done,  etc. 

While  talking  of  weight,  it  may  be 
worth  while  to  say  something  of  the  tour- 
ing outfit  that  I  have  found  most  conven- 
ient. The  best  clothes-carrier  is  the  flat, 
triangular  bag  built  to  fit  between  the 
frame-bars ;  it  is  better  than  a  knapsack 
strapped  to  the  handle-bar,  because  the 
weight  is  carried  lower  down,  making 
the  machine  less  top-heavy,  and  it  leaves 
the  handle-bar  free  for  any  light  parcel. 
My  outfit  consists  of  three  light  outing- 
shirts,  three  suits  of  gauze  underclothing, 
a  dark  flannel  bicycle  suit,  laced  tanned 
gaiters,  light-weight  rubber  coat,  comb, 
clothes-,  hair-  and  tooth-brushes,  soap  and 
towel,  cup,  writing-pad  and  pencil,  map 
and  matches  ;  and,  of  course,  the  regular 
kit  of  tools,  and  materials  for  road  repairs. 
Another  suit  of  clothes  suitable  for  calls 
andr  Sundays  would  be  pleasant  to  have, 
and  other  shirts  and  shoes;  but  this  means 
weight.  Now  that  the  bicyclist's  knick- 
erbockers are  seen  everywhere  in  summer, 
even  at  the  theatre  and  in  church,  it  is 
hardly  necessary  to  carry  more  than  essen- 
tials. An  umbrella  is  not  needed.  If  one 
has  a  rubber  coat  for  stormy  weather,  he 
can  ride,  rain  or  no  rain,  while  it  is  next 


205 


TJie   Wheel  of  To-Day 


to  impossible  to  ride  and  carry  an  umbrella, 
whether  for  sun  or  rain.  Gaiters  are  bet- 
ter than  low  shoes,  which  are  apt  to  fill 
with  sand  when  the  road  is  too  soft  to  ride. 

To  come  back  to  my  point  of  begin- 
ning :  When  a  good  and  safe  flying-ma- 
chine is  introduced  at  a  price  that  I  can 
afford,  I  shall  perhaps  abandon  my  bicycle. 
Until  that  time,  —  and  I  am  very  much 
afraid  that  it  will  not  be  in  my  time,  —  I 
shall  hold  fast  to  it.  I  see  nothing  to  com- 
pare with  it,  not  even  the  pneumatic  skate- 
roller,  upon  which  experts  in  England  are 
said  to  have  made  as  high  as  twelve  miles 
an  hour  upon  a  fair  road.  How  about 
hills?  The  slightest  rise  in  the  road  must 
compel  the  foot  bicyclist  to  take  off  his 
skates,  and  carry  them  over  his  shoulder. 

I  shall  hold  fast  to  my  pneumatic 
*'  Safety,"  thanks  to  which  I  have  enjoyed 
scores  of  days  that  live  in  the  memory. 
The  bicycle  tempts  one  out-doors.  There 
is  something  about  bicycling  and  tennis- 
playing  that  enables  one  to  enjoy  either 
when  the  mercury  rises  to  a  point  where 
all  other  exercise  seems  forbidden.  Upon 
days  when  I  should  hesitate  to  take  out  a 
horse,  I  have  enjoyed  a  quiet  turn  upon 
my  wheel.  There  is  an  independence 
about  it  that  one  doesn't  feel  in  driving. 

206 


The   Wheel  of  To-Day 

Keep  a  note-book,  and  when  your  sum- 
mer's tour  is  over,  count  up  how  many 
glorious  days,  how  many  bits  of  scenery 
and  of  adventure,  are  well  worth  remem- 
bering. It  is  only  from  the  top  of  a  hill 
that  one  gets  all  there  is  of  beauty  in  a 
fine  sunset.  Sometimes,  when  belated,  I 
have  enjoyed  from  my  wheel  pictures  of 
the  dying  day  so  glorious,  bursts  of  color 
so  resplendent,  as  to  make  one  regret  the 
shortness  of  life  if  for  no  other  reason  than 
that  such  superb  triumphs  of  color  have 
filled  the  skies  before  we  were  here  to  see 
them,  and  will  continue  to  glow  for  gen- 
erations after  we  are  gone.  To  paraphrase 
Mr.  Gilbert's  "  Pooh  Bah,"  there  will  be 
sunsets  without  end ;  we  may  not  see 
them,  but  they  will  be  there. 

To  wheel  quietly  up  and  down  hill  and 
across  the  valley,  miles  away  from  so-called 
civilization,  and  yet  knowing  that  with  a 
good  bicycle  miles  mean  but  little ;  to 
wheel  along,  drinking  in  the  perfumes  of 
the  morning  with  the  songs  of  the  birds, 
and  at  even,  thankful  for  the  matchless 
glow  in  the  west  and  the  music  of  the 
cow-bells,  to  wheel  silently  at  sunset  into 
some  peaceful  village  where  your  guide- 
book bids  you  expect  a  welcome,  —  and 
at  reduced  rates,  —  all  this  is  worth  cele- 
207 


TJie  Wheel  of  To-Day 

brating.  The  use  of  travel,  says  Dr.  John- 
son, is  to  regulate  the  imagination  by  real- 
ity. Thanks  to  the  bicycle,  we  have  the 
joys  and  benefits  of  this  discipline  almost 
without  cost,  and  without  the  fatigue  in- 
cident to  prolonged  tramps  on  foot. 


208 


11.     Woman  and  the   Bicycle 

By  Marguerite  Aleringtofi 

^^\^^  HE  collocation  of  woman  and 
■  ^fiS!^  the  bicycle  has  not  wholly 
I  ^^hIi  outgrown  controversy;  but 
H  ^^tJ!  if  the  woman's  taste  be  for 
the  royal  pleasure  of  glow- 
^'  ing  exercise  in  sunlit  air,  she 
will  do  well  quietly  but  firmly 
to  override  argument  with  the  best  model 
of  a  wheel  to  which  she  may  lay  hand. 

Never  did  an  athletic  pleasure  from  which 
the  other  half  is  not  debarred  come  into 
popularity  at  a  more  fitting  time  than  cy- 
cling has  to-day,  when  a  heavy  burden  of 
work  is  laid  on  all  the  sisterhood,  whether 
to  do  good,  earn  bread,  or  squander  leisure  ; 
no  outdoor  pastime  can  be  more  indepen- 
dently pursued,  and  few  are  as  practicable  as 
many  days  in  a  year.  The  one  who  fain 
would  ride,  and  to  whom  a  horse  is  a  wist- 
ful dream,  at  least  may  hope  to  realize  a 
wheel.  Once  purchased,  it  needs  only  to 
be  stabled  in  a  passageway,  and  fed  on  oil 
and  air. 

209 


lVo7iian  and  the  Bicycle 

The  first  women  cyclists  of  New  York 
City  seemed  to  rise  in  a  heroic  handful 
from  the  earth  near  Grant's  tomb,  ow  Riv- 
erside Drive.  That  was  years  ago.  To- 
day, on  the  broad  western  highway  of  the 
city  a  dotted  line  of  riders,  men  and  women, 
forms  a  fourth  parallel  to  the  dark  band 
which  the  Palisades  stretch  across  the  sky, 
the  Hudson's  silver  width,  and  the  white 
thread  of  flying  smoke  from  the  trains  be- 
side the  river.  They  ride  from  the  first 
day  of  spring  to  the  last  privileged  days 
of  frosty  winter.  They  ride  from  morning 
to  high  noon,  and  their  lanterned  wheels 
purr  by  with  the  gleam  oi  a  cat's  eye 
through  the  dark.  A  moon  sends  hordes 
of  their  queer  cobwebby  shadows  scurry- 
ing over  the  ground.  In  the  revolving 
years,  to  the  eyes  of  those  whose  windows 
overlook  the  wheelways,  the  woman  cyclist 
has  ceased  to  be  a  white  blackbird.  The 
clear-eyed,  vivified  faces  that  speed  by  give 
no  clew  to  the  circumstances  of  the  riders, 
but  inquiry  shows  that  many  callings  and 
conditions  love  the  wheel.  The  woman 
of  affairs  has  learned  that  an  hour,  or  even 
half  an  hour,  may  be  stolen  from  the  work- 
ing day,  with  profit  to  both  woman  and 
affairs.  Now  and  again  a  complaint  arises 
of  the  narrowness  of  woman's  sphereo    For 


Woman  and  the  Bicycie 


such  disorder  of  the  soul 
the  sufferer  can  do  no  bet- 
ter   than    to   flatten  her 
sphere  to  a  circle,  mount 
it,  and  take  to  the  road. 
An    hour  of   the   wheel 
means    sixty    minutes 
of  fresh  air  and 
wholesome  exer- 
cise,   and 
at    least 
eight 
miles  of 
change 
of  scene  ; 
it     may 
well    be 

put  down  to  the  credit  side  of  the  day's 
reckoning  with  flesh  and  spirit. 

Like  all  costumes,  the  regimentals  of  the 
wheel  are  aflFected  by  locality  and  racial 
prejudice.  An  American  skirt  found  itself 
in  a  conspicuous  minority  in  France,  and 
resigned,  accordingly,  in  favor  of  a  pair 
of  national  culottes,  —  excellent  things  for 
the  breakneck  hills  of  Normandy  !  —  the 
culottes  crossed  to  England,  and  were  ex- 
changed for  a  short  corduroy  skirt  with 
high  leggings.  The  corduroy  skirt  and  leg- 
gings journeyed  to  Toronto,  where  the  roads 


Correct  Position. 


IFoman  and  the  Bicycle 

are  flat  and  smooth  as  a  billiard  table,  and 
the  ministers  as  conservative  as  eloquent. 
To  escape  becoming  an  object  of  reproach, 
the  short  skirt  of  the  mother  country  was 
lengthened  to  the  standard  of  the  colonies. 
Returning  to  New  York,  the  Toronto 
compromise  took  several  tucks  in  itself  in 
order  to  conquer  the  V-shaped  roads  of 
Gotham. 

In  cosmopolitan  New  York  the  eye  of 
the  spectator  has  long  become  wonted  to 
costumes  of  all  kinds.  Bloomer  and  tailor- 
made  alike  ride  on  unchallenged  ;  tunicked 
and  gaitered  Rosalinds  excite  no  more 
comment  than  everyday  people  in  every- 
day clothes.  Knickerbockers  and  the  skirt 
composed  of  twin  filibegs  have  their  ad- 
vocates ;  Pinero's  youngest  Amazon  has  set 
a  pretty  fashion  for  the  girl  cyclist,  and 
many  riders  make  their  records  in  the  con- 
ventional walking-dress  with  cone-shaped 
skirt  worn  over  the  silk  trousers  of  an  oda- 
lisk,  or  the  satin  breeks  of  an  operatic 
page.  No  one  costume  may  yet  claim  to 
represent  the  pastime,  for  experiment  is 
still  busy  with  the  problem  ;  but  the  results 
are  in  the  direction  of  simplicity  and  first 
principles.  So  far  the  large  majority  of 
American  women  have  declared  in  favor 
of  the  skirt  in  one  form  or  another.      Short 


212 


Woman  and  the  Bicycle 


213 


Woman  and  the  Bicycle 

rides  on  level  roads  can  be  accomplished 
with  but  slight  modification  of  ordinary 
attire ;  and  the  sailor-hat,  shirt-waist,  serge- 
skirt  uniform,  is  as  much  at  home  on  the  bi- 
cycle as  it  is  anywhere  else  the  world  over. 
The  armies  of  women  clerks  in  Chicago 
and  Washington  who  go  by  wheel  to  busi- 
ness, show  that  the  exercise  within  bounds 
need  not  impair  the  spick-and-spandy  neat- 
ness that  marks  the  bread-winning  Amer- 
ican girl.  On  the  excursion  a  special 
adaptation  of  dress  is  absolutely  necessary ; 
for  skirts,  while  they  have  not  hindered 
women  from  climbing  to  the  topmost 
branches  of  the  higher  education,  may 
prove  fatal  in  down-hill  coasting ;  and 
skirts,  unless  frankly  shortened  or  dis- 
carded, must  be  fashioned  so  as  to  mini- 
mize the  danger  of  entanglement  with 
the  flying  wheel. 

The  pastime  does  not  lend  itself  to  per- 
sonal display ;  and  in  criticism  the  costume 
must  be  referred,  not  to  the  standards  of 
the  domestic  hearthrug,  but  to  the  exi- 
gencies of  the  wheel,  the  rider's  positions 
to  the  mechanical  demands  of  the  motion. 
Accordingly,  the  cyclist  is  to  be  thought 
of  only  as  mounted  and  in  flight,  belong- 
ing not  to  a  picture,  but  to  a  moving 
panorama.  If  she  ride  well,  the  chances 
215 


Woman  and  the  Bicycle 


are  she  looks  well ;  for  she  will  have  rec- 
onciled grace,  comfort,  and  the  tempo- 
rary fitness  of  things. 

Regarding  bicycling  purely  as  exercise, 
there  is  an  advantage  in  the  symmetry  of 
development  it  brings  about,  and  a  danger 
in  riding  too  fast  and  far.  The  occasional 
denunciation  of  the  pastime  as  unwomanly 
is  fortunately  lost  in  the 
general  approval  that  a  new 
and  wholesome  recreation 
has  been  found,  whose  pur- 
suit adds  joy  and  vigor  to 
the  dowry  of  the 
race. 

Having  reached 
these  con- 
clusions, 
the  on- 
looker is 
drawn  by 
the  irre- 
sistible force 

of  the  stream.  She  borrows,  hires,  or  buys 
a  wheel,  and  follows  tentatively.  Her  point 
of  view  is  forever  after  changed  ;  long  be- 
fore practice  has  made  her  an  expert  she 
is  an  enthusiast,  ever  ready  to  proselyte, 
defend  —  or  ride  ! 

There  is  full  opportunity  in  and  about 
216 


Correct  Position. 


tVontan  and  the  Bicycle 

New  York  City  for  the  daily  hour  with 
the  wheel.  From  Christmas  to  Christ- 
mas Central  Park  is  a  favorite  haunt  of 
the  cyclist  when  the  weather  is  kind  ;  and 
indeed  a  fine  frenzy  once  set  rolling  the 
eye  of  a  poet,  who  told  of  a  wintry  flight 
among  snow-laden  pine-trees  over  sheets 
of  frozen  snow.  It  sounded  like  a  Norse 
Saga;  but  the  scene  was  Central  Park,  the 
steed  a  wheel,  and  the  story  true.      River- 


A   "  Scorcher'''' —  Wrong  Position. 


side  Drive  and  the  Boulevard  offer  fair 
roads  and  a  breeze  coming  fresh  from  the 
sources  of  the  Hudson,  untainted  as  it 
sweeps  by  Albany;  the  historic  ground  of 
Washington  Heights  is  practicable  as  well 
as  picturesque,  for  the  Father  of  his  Coun- 
try outlined  a  clear  march  for  the  city's 


217 


IVomaft  and  the  Bicycle 

gigantic  stride ;  Washington  Bridge  is  a 
tine  objective  point,  where  the  rider  will 
surely  dismount  to  rest  in  the  embrasure 
of  the  parapets,  and  admire  the  view  up 
and  down  stream  where  the  little  Har- 
lem wriggles  along  between  its  high  green 
banks.  For  the  longer  ride,  by  crossing 
Madison  Avenue  Bridge  a  wheel-worthy 
road  leads  to  Westchester  and  Mount  Ver- 
non. There  is  a  ferry  at  Fort  Lee,  and  a 
good  road  even  in  New  Jersey,  skirting 
the  trap-rock  battlements  at  whose  base 
the  Hudson  lies  like  a  broad  moat.  Peo- 
ple who  return  from  Tarrytown  speak 
rather  boastfully   of  the  hills. 

Far-reaching  dreams  of  summer  may 
bear  the  traveller  of  the  wheel  through 
clean  stretches  in  the  Berkshires,  on  sunny 
lanes  of  Normandy,  among  Welsh  moun- 
tains, or  down  Roman  roads  between  Eng- 
lish hedgerows;  but  all  the  workaday  year 
there  are  highways  radiating  from  the  heart 
of  the  city  to  the  borderland  of  the  coun- 
try, where  one  may  breathe  new  inspira- 
tion for  the  world,  —  the  world  that  we 
persist  in  having  too  much  with  us  in  the 
getting  and  spending  efforts  that  lay  waste 
the  powers. 


218 


IV Oman  and  the  Bicycle 


SPINNLIED. 

FOR    GRETCHEN    ON    THE    WHEEL. 

Good  health  to  all,  good  pleasure,  good  speed, 
A  favoring  breeze  —  but  not  too  high  — 

For  the  outbound  spin  !  Who  rides  may  read 
The  open  secret  of  earth  and  sky. 

For  life  is  quickened  and  pulses  bound, 

Morbid  questionings  sink  and  die. 
As  the  wheel  slips  over  the  gliddery  ground, 

And  the  young  day  wakes  in  a  crimson  sky. 

Oh,  the  merry  comradeship  of  the  road, 
With  trees  that  nod  as  we  pass  them  by, 

With  hurrying  bird  and  lurking  toad. 
Or  vagabond  cloud  in  the  noonday  sky  ! 

Oh,  the  wholesome  smell  of  the  good  brown  earth 
When  showers  have  fallen  for  suns  to  dry  ! 

Oh,  the  westward  run  to  the  mystic  birth 
Of  a  silver  moon  in  a  golden  sky  ! 

Good  health  to  all,  good  pleasure,  good  speed, 
A  favoring  breeze  —  but  not  too  high  — 

For  the  homeward  spin  !  Who  rides  may  read 
The  open  secret  of  earth  and  sky. 


219 


UNIVERSITY 

OF 


III.    A  Doctor's  View  of  Bicycling 

By  J.   West  Roosevelt,  M.D. 

IHEN  a  person  whose  muscu- 
lar system  is  not  already  well 
developed  by  other  exercise 
^^i«^^y  begins  riding  the  bicycle,  he 
^ii^AYl  will  probably  be  surprised  to 
find  (unless  the  various  bruises  incidental 
to  his  first  attempts  are  painful  enough  to 
mask  all  other  aches),  that  the  stiffness 
and  soreness  due  to  the  unaccustomed  work 
are  not  confined  to  the  legs,  or  even  the 
region  of  the  hips.  Probably  he  has  more 
discomfort  in  the  thighs  than  anywhere 
else  ;  but  he  soon  learns  that  it  is  well  to 
avoid  too  sudden  movements  of  the  whole 
body,  for  they  cause  not  a  little  pain  in 
various  unexpected  parts  of  the  trunk,  and 
especially  in  the  loins  and  between  the 
shoulder-blades.  He  discovers,  also,  that  a 
number  of  muscles  in  his  arms  and  shoul- 
ders and  chest  are  more  or  less  stiff  and 
sore.  In  this  painful  way  is  it  demon- 
strated to  him  that  cycling  should  not  be 
regarded  as  an  exercise  of  the  legs  alone. 


221 


A   Doctor  ^s   I 'lew  of  Bicycling 

Observations  by 
experts  show 
that  it  is  not 
only  the  legs 
which  are  de- 
veloped by 
wheeling.  In 
previously  se- 
dentary persons  a 
considerable  in- 
crease in  the  cir- 
cumference of 
the  chest  takes 
place,  the  in- 
crease often 
amounting  to 
one  or  two,  and 
sometimes  even 
three,  inches. 
The  arms  and 
forearms  also  grow  firmer,  and  it  is  said 
that  in  them  also  quite  a  marked  increase 
in  size  has  been  seen.  The  muscular  sys- 
tem everywhere  in  the  body  also  improves 
in  tone. 

It  is  easy  to  see  why  cycling  increases 
the  strength  of  the  legs.  It  is  also  easy 
to  see  why  the  chest  measurement  should 
be  increased  as  a  result  of  the  deeper  and 
more   rapid  breathing.      Not  only  do  the 

222 


At  Rest  —  Miiscles  of  Arm ^  Body,  aud 
Neck  Relaxed. 


A   Doctor  'i   View  of  Bicycling 


^^ 


respiratory  mus- 
cles  become 
stronger  and 
larger,  but  also 
the  joints  and 
cartilages  of  the 
ribs  move  more 
easily  and  more 
freely,  because 
they  have  been 
made  more  lim- 
ber by  use.  I  do 
not  know  of  any 
investigations 
which  may  have 
been  made  to  de- 
terminewhether 
or  not  there  is 
any  increased 
mobility  of  chest 
(i.e.,  extent  of 
expansion  and  contraction),  as  a  result  of 
bicycle  exercise  ;  but  it  is  almost  certain 
that  such  studies  would  demonstrate  its 
existence. 

The  muscles  which  we  have  been  con- 
sidering are  all  directly  "  exercised,"  as 
the  word  is  usually  understood,  since  they 
all  contract  and  relax  more  frequently  and 
more  forcibly  than  when  a  person  is  either 

223 


In  Action  —  Muscles  of  Neck,  Shoulder, 

A  rin,  and  Upper  Parts  of  tJie 

Body  Contracted. 


A  Doctor  'j  V^iew  of  Bicycling 

at  rest  or  doing  very  little  work.  I  have 
said  that  the  power  of  muscles  not  directly 
(or  rather  not  visibly)  employed  is  also  in- 
creased. There  are  two  reasons  for  this. 
One  is  that  exercise,  if  not  excessive  (and 
especially  exercise  which  is  pleasurable, 
and  which  is  taken  in  the  open  air),  al- 
most always  makes  the  appetite  greater, 
the  digestion  completer,  the  heart  stronger, 
and  the  circulation  better;  there  is  a  gen- 
erally improved  tone  in  every  organ  of  the 
body,  simply  because  all  are  better  and 
more  abundantly  fed,  including  the  mus- 
cles, both  those  which  are  actively  used 
and  those  which  are  not.  The  second 
reason  for  the  increase  of  power  and  size 
of  many  muscles  which  are  not  connected 
with  the  lower  extremity,  and  which  the 
superficial  observer  would  think  were  not 
called  into  play  in  bicycling,  is  that  they 
really  are  in  active  use,  although  they  ap- 
pear to  be  at  rest.  For  example,  a  large 
number  are  concerned  in  maintaining  the 
equilibrium,  so  that  the  wheel  does  not 
fall  sideways.  This  requires  at  times  only 
a  perfect  balance  of  the  forces  of  oppos- 
ing muscles,  and  at  others  enough  contrac- 
tion of  some  of  them  to  shift  the  weight 
by  inclining  the  body  to  one  side  or  the 
other.  Others  fix  the  lower  portion  of 
224 


A   Doctor  '5   Vieiv  of  Bicyclhig' 


A   Side   View  of  A.  A.  Zijnmermati  in  Racing  Position 
on  a  Wheel  of  his  own  Design, 


VlBK^^I^ 


OF  - 


UNiVErts/ry 


A  Doctor  ^s  View  of  Bicycliug 


the  spine  and  hip-bones  so  as  to  enable 
the  great  thigh-muscles  to  work  effectively. 
In  the  arms  and  forearms  very  delicate  ad- 
justment is  required  in  steering  ;  and  when 
hill-climbing  or  increased  speed  demands 
it,  a  great  deal  of  force  is  expended  by  the 
arms  in  the  firm  grip  and  strong  upward 
pull  on  the  handles  which  counteracts  the 

strong  downward 


push  on  the  ped- 
als. 

There  is  one 
muscular  struc- 
ture which  bicy- 
cling, like  every 
form  of  physical 
exertion,  compels 
to  do  extra  work, 
—  the  heart;  and 
upon  its  integrity 
depend  not  only 
health  and  physi- 
cal vigor,  but  also 
life  itself.  It  has 
often  been  assert- 
ed that  wheeling 
is  apt  to  injure 
the  heart.  Is  this 
so  ?  I  can  only 
say  that,  theoret- 


Rear  View  of  Zimmerman  —  At  Rest. 


227 


A   Doctor^ s   V^iew  of  Bicycling 

ically,  it  is  impossible  for  such  harm  to 
result  in  sound  people,  save  from  attempts 
to  attain  a  high  rate  of  speed,  or  from 
prolonged  and  fatiguing  rides,  or  from 
climbing  hills  which  are  either  very  steep 
or  very  long;  and  practically  I  have  been 
unable  to  find  authentic  records  of  any  case 
in  which  heart  disease  has  been  caused  by 
the  use  of  the  wheel  in  a  sensible  and 
moderate  way.  It  may  be  added  that, 
in  the  opinion  of  a  number  of  physicians 
of  great  ability,  the  existence  of  organic 
heart  disease  does  not  always  debar  cy- 
cling. Indeed,  the  wheel  is  actually  rec- 
ommended by  some  as  a  valuable  aid  in 
the  treatment  of  certain  aflfections  of  this 
organ.  There  is  a  striking  resemblance 
between  bicycling  and  walking,  so  far  as 
their  effects  on  the  heart  are  concerned  : 
either  may  be  healthful  or  harmful.  Ex- 
cessive exertion  in  either  is  dangerous, 
and  moderate  exertion  is  beneficial.  That 
cycling  is  more  apt  to  do  harm  than  walk- 
ing, can  hardly  be  denied  ;  there  is  much 
more  temptation  to  ride  than  to  walk 
too  fast  on  the  level;  and  the  hill-climb- 
ing on  the  machine,  even  at  a  moderate 
speed,  is  far  more  oi  a  strain  than  walk- 
ing up  the  same  hill  at  a  speed  propor- 
tionately moderate,  and  very  few  people 
228 


A  Doctor'' s  View  of  Bicyclings 

seem  to  have  sense  enough  to  get  off  and 
walk  when  going  up  hills.  It  is  safe  to 
assert  that  for  a  person  capable  of  acting 
with  common-sense  no  harm  will  come 
from  either ;  and  certainly  no  more  from 
one  than  from  the 
other.  If  either 
in  wheeling  or 
walking  shortness 
of  breath  is  felt, 
one  knows  that  an 
unwonted  strain 
has  been  thrown 
upon  the  heart 
and  lungs;  and 
the  intensity  and 
duration  of  the 
breathlessness 
fairly  measure  the 
degree  of  strain. 
It  is  safe  to  as- 
sume that  if  nei- 
ther shortness  of 
breath  nor  palpi- 
tation of  the  heart 
be  felt,  the  strain 

IS       not      excessive.  Rear  view  of  Zimmerman  —  In  Action.* 


*  The  pressure  upon  the  right  pedal,  accompanied  by  strong 
contraction  of  the  muscles  of  the  right  side,  is  especially  well- 
marked  near  the  shoulder. 


229 


A   Doctor  'j   View  of  Bicy:liiig 

A  physician  who  has  given  much  thought 
to  the  subject  says  that  so  long  as  the 
cycUst  can  breathe  with  the  month  shut,  he 
is  certainly  perfectly  safe  so  far  as  heart- 
strain  is  concerned. 

It  has  often  been  asserted  that  cycling  is 
injurious  to  women.  There  is  a  little  truth 
in  the  assertion.  Paraphrasing  one  of  Lin- 
coln's sentences,  I  would  modify  it,  and  say 
that  cycling  is  harmful  to  so7ne  women  all 
of  the  time  ;  to  all  women  some  of  the 
time ;  but  not  to  all  women  all  of  the 
time.  There  is  no  reason  to  think  that  a 
healthy  woman  can  be  injured  by  using  the 
wheel,  provided  she  does  not  over-exert  herself 
by  riding  too  long  a  time,  or  too  fast,  or  up 
too  steep  hills ;  and  provided  she  does  not  ride 
when  common-sense  and  physiology  alike  for- 
bid any  Jieedless  exertion  ;  and  provided,  also, 
she  does  not  get  the  bad  habit  of  stooping  over 
the  handle-bar ;  and  there  is  reason  not 
merely  to  think,  but  to  know,  that  many 
women  are  greatly  benefited  by  the  exer- 
cise. There  are  certain  anatomical  and 
physiological  peculiarities  which  make  it 
far  more  dangerous  for  a  woman  than  for 
a  man  to  undergo  excessive  physical  strain ; 
but  if  she  be  careful  to  avoid  strain,  cycling 
is  both  beneficial  and  safe  for  any  woman 
who  is  free  from  organic  disease. 

230 


A   Doctor 'j    I'iew   of  Bicycling 

The  same  may  be  said  of  men  and  chil- 
dren, and  adolescents  of  either  sex.  If  no 
organic  disease  exists,  bicycling  in  moder- 
ation tends  to  increase  strength  and  im- 
prove health,  except  in  persons  who  find 
by  practical  trial  that  every  ride,  no  matter 
how  short  and  easy,  is  followed  by  a  feel- 
ing of  exhaustion.  I  do  not  mean  merely 
a  rather  comfortable  sense  of  fatigue ;  I 
mean  a  weariness  which  is  painful.  Hu- 
man beings  are  not  all  built  alike;  and 
there  are  some  people  who,  although  they 
seem  to  be  in  good  health,  and  to  possess 
not  a  little  physical  strength,  ought  not  to 
ride  the  wheel,  simply  because,  for  some 
unknown  reason,  they  are  not  able  to  ride 
without  injuring  themselves.  There  is 
some  peculiarity  about  their  body  ma- 
chinery which  forbids  its  use  in  this  par- 
ticular way. 

There  is  one  bad  habit  into  which  many 
wheelmen  have  fallen  (or  perhaps  one  ought 
to  say  "slouched*'),  which  calls  for  sharp 
condemnation,  for  reasons  partly  medical 
and  partly  ^Esthetic.  There  is  absolutely 
no  reason  for  stooping  over  the  handles  in 
either  of  the  two  ways  so  commonly  seen, 
—  and  there  is  no  excuse  for  so  doing,  — 
in  ordinary  road-riding.  It  may  be  neces- 
sary for  the  "  scorcher,"  when  engaged  in 
231 


A  Doctor  's  P'iev.)  of  Bicyclhig 

"  scoixhing,"  to  assume  the  one  or  the 
other  of  these  attitudes,  —  to  sprawl  with 
the  body  straight,  but  almost  horizontal, 
and  the  head  close  to  the  handle-bar,  or  to 
bend  the  upper  part  of  the  back  as  if  try- 
ing to  break  it  in  its  middle,  and  throw 
the  shoulders  forward  as  if  desiring  to  make 
them  meet  across  his  breast.  Even  so,  one 
who  is  not  "  scorching  "  does  not  need  to 
make  himself  a  hideous  object  to  look  at, 
and  also  to  reduce  the  benefits  of  wheeling 
to  a  minimum,  so  far  as  its  effect  on  the 
chest  capacity  is  concerned. 

When  high  speed  is  attempted,  the  body 
must  be  bent  forward,  and  the  handles 
must  be  low.  The  stooping  posture  re- 
duces the  surface  exposed  to  the  resisting 
air,  and  also  makes  possible  the  effective 
use  of  many  more  muscles  than  can  be 
used  when  the  cyclist  sits  erect,  as  do  those 
on  pages  211  and  216.  The  picture  on 
page  225  is  from  a  photograph  of  A.  A. 
Zimmerman.  It  shows  that  wonderful 
rider  in  the  position  assumed  by  him  when 
making  his  record-breaking  speed.  There 
is  something  singularly  graceful  about  the 
curve  of  the  spinal  column,  and  the  posi- 
tion of  the  arms  and  shoulders.  It  is  the 
grace  which  comes  from  evident  power. 
On  page  217  is  depicted  a  "scorcher"  of 

232 


A  Doctor  'j  Vie^v  of  Bicydifig 

the  ordinary  type.  He  is  simply  a  hideous 
caricature  of  the  real  athlete,  —  a  man  who 
does  not  know  how  to  use  his  muscles 
engaged  in  a  futile  effort  to  look  as  if 
he  did. 


233 


SURF    AND    SURF-BATHING 


By  DiiffleLi  Osborne 


OF 

^t.fFORNy 


^^HE  popularity  of  surf-bath- 
ing as  a  sport  may  be  said  to 


be  of  fairly  recent  growth  in 
H  "  /M^^^i^m  ^^^^  country.  Although  few, 
^^lMMJ»l^.lH|lmlM^^^lll^^l(^^^»>{lllfl   perhaps,  realize  tne  lact,  it  is 

nevertheless  true  that  most 
of  the  beaches  where  now  the  surf  curls 
over  networks  of  life-lines,  and  where  the 
brown-faced  bathing-master  lounges,  lazy, 
yet  watchful,  before  hundreds  of  gayly  clad 
pleasure-seekers,  were  solitudes  but  a  few 
years  since.  The  white-topped  waves  tum- 
bled one  after  another,  unnoticed  upon  the 
gray  shore;  the  sea-breeze  played  only  with 
the  rank  grasses  upon  the  dunes;  while  cir- 
cling gull  and  tern  screamed  their  confiden- 
tial communications  to  each  other  without 


237 


Stir/  and  Sw/-  Bathing 


fear  of  being  overheard  by  human  eaves- 
droppers. 

Only  on  Saturdays,  at  the  hour  of  full 
tide,  did  the  scene  change ;  and  then  per- 
haps a  farm-wagon  or  so  rolled  heavily 
down  to  where  the  ripples  lapped  the  sand; 
a  stout  rope  was  drawn  from  its  coil  under 
the  seats,  and  tied  firmly  around  the  hub 
and  axle;  a  dilapidated  fish-house  lent  itself 
for  a  change  of  garments,  and  finally  some 
bronzed  ex-whaler,  with  his  bulky  strength 
robed  in  a  flannel  shirt,  and  old  trousers 
tied  with  ropes  at  waist  and  ankles,  slipped 
his  wrist  through  the  hand-loop  at  the  free 
end  of  the  rope,  and  dragged  it  out  into 
the  surf,  —  a  sort  of  human  anchor-buoy, 
—  while  women,  children,  and  less  stur- 
dy manhood  clung  to  its  now  tightening, 
now  slackening  length,  and  sputtered  and 
shrieked  over  their  Saturday  bath. 

But,  passing  at  a  bound  from  farm- 
wagon,  hand-looped  rope,  and  ex-whaler 
to  the  less  picturesque,  but  more  effectual, 
appliances  of  to-day,  the  following  is  by  all 
odds  the  simplest  and  best :  Two  parallel 
ropes,  firmly  anchored,  and  so  elevated  from 
the  shore  as  to  lie  along  the  surface  of  the 
water,  are  run  out  to  two  heavy  log-buoys, 
also  anchored,  at  a  distance  of  seventy-five 
yards,  more  or  less,  according  to  the  char- 

238 


Surf  and  Surf-  Bathing 


acter  of  both  beach  and  surf.  Half-way 
from  the  shore  to  the  buoys  these  ropes 
should  be  connected  by  a  transverse  line, 
with  cork-floats  fastened  at  regular  inter- 
vals, the  distances  being  such  that  the 
cork-line  shall  rest  upon  the  water  some 
yards  beyond  the  point  where  the  heaviest 
breakers  comb.  If  placed  closer  in-shore, 
it  is  likely  to  become  a  source  of  serious 
danger  ;  for  diving  beneath  a  heavy  wave, 
and  coming  up  under,  or  perhaps  being 
thrown  with  more  or  less  force  against, 
a  taut  rope  or  a  rough  cork-buoy,  has 
been  the  occasion  of  many  painful  hurts  ; 
and  serious  injury  can  be  very  readily  im- 
agined. 

Regard  being  had  to  the  above  caution, 
this  system  of  life-lines  is  really  safer  than 
much  more  elaborate  contrivances.  Wo- 
men, children,  and  the  inexperienced  in 
general  should  keep  within  the  rectangle 
formed  by  the  shore,  the  long  ropes,  and 
the  cork-line;  and  they  would,  moreover, 
do  wisely  to  stay  near  that  rope,  lying  upon 
the  side  from  which  the  surf  may  "  set." 
Then,  if  swept  ofi^  their  feet,  the  chances 
are  all  in  favor  of  their  being  carried  with- 
in reach  of  some  support  which  will  keep 
them  up  until  assistance  can  be  had.  It 
seems  hardly  necessary  to  say  that  any  such 

239 


Surf  (Did  Surf-  Bathing 


complication  of  lines  as  is  seen  at  some 
points  of  Coney  Island,  for  instance,  would 
be  a  danger,  rather  than  a  safeguard,  in  any 
surf  heavy  enough  to  '*  throw  "  a  bather. 
A  word  as  to  bathing-costumes  may  be 
of  some  service  here.  A  man's  suit  should 
be  of  flannel,  because  that  material  is  both 
warm  and  light ;  it  should  be  made  in  one 
piece,  sleeveless,  reaching  just  to  the  knee, 
belted  in  at  the  waist,  and,  above  all,  close- 
fitting. 


There  are  few,  now- 
adays,   who   do   not   ap- 
preciate the  privilege  of 
playing    with 
-     the    Atlantic 
Ocean;     but 
perhaps  there  are  fewer 
still  who  have  ever  taken 
the  trouble  to  study  the 
character  and  humors  of 
their  playmate  —  for  he 
is  full  of  tricks,  this  same 
ocean,  and  his  jests   are 
sometimes   sadly    practi- 
cal.     He  is  all  life   and 
good  spirits,  the  jolliest  of  jolly  company, 
when  he  is  in  the  humor  ;    but  he  must 

240 


Figure   i. 


Surf  and  Surf  ■  Bathing 

be  treated  with  tact, — tact  born  of  a  knowl- 
edge of  his  ways  and  moods  ;  and,  above 
all,  his  would-be  friends  must  learn  to 
recognize  when  he  is  really  angry,  and 
then  they  must  leave  him  to  rave  or 
grumble  alone,  until  boisterous  good-na- 
ture resumes  its  sway. 

Watch  and  note  the  character  of  the 
surf  and  the  formation  of  the  beach  for  a 
few  days  ;  the  knowledge  gained  may  be 
useful.  Do  you  see  that  line  of  breakers 
a  quarter  of  a  mile  away  ?  There  lies  the 
bar ;  and  to-day  the  surf  is  heavy  enough 
to  break  upon  it,  though  the  depth  there 
must  be  at  least  six  feet.  Sometimes  it  is 
shallower ;  and,  if  you  are  ambitious  and 
—  foolish,  you  can  wade  and  swim  out 
there,  and  meet  the  waves  first-hand.  It 
is  not  worth  while  to  run  the  risk,  though : 
the  seas  will  usually  form  again  long  before 
they  reach  the  shore  ;  and,  if  you  are  sen- 
sible, you  can  enjoy  them  fully  as  much 
here  as  if  you  had  put  several  hundred 
yards  between  yourself  and  help  in  the 
always  possible  contingency  of  accident. 

No,  it  is  not  remarkably  rough  now ; 
but  last  week  !  you  should  have  been  here 
then.  There  had  been  great  tumults  far 
out  beyond  that  smoke  you  see  floating 
above   the   horizon,    where   some   hidden 

241 


Surf  ami  Surf-  Bathing 

Steamer  is  ploughing  her  way  through 
blue  water  ;  and  the  great  seas  rolled  and 
tumbled  upon  the  bar  and  broke  there, 
but  they  had  no  time  to  form  themselves 
again.  Plunging  onward  under  their  own 
impulse,  and  beaten  out  of  shape  by  fiercely 
thronging  successors,  they  rushed  in  toward 
the  shore,  a  seething  turmoil  of  foam, 
sweeping  the  sand  from  one  side,  and  heap- 
ing it  up  on  another,  —  all  v/hite  above 
and  gray  below  from  bar  to  beach.  Next 
week  there  may  be  scarce  a  ripple ;  you 
would  not  know  there  was  an  outer  bar ; 
and  the  wavelets,  as  they  lap  the  sand, 
will  seem  so  placid  that  you  cannot  con- 
ceive how  they  could  ever  have  lost  their 
temper. 

In  spite  of  all  its  changes,  however,  the 
surf  has  sometimes  local  characteristics 
as  fixed  as  anything  can  be  with  which 
the  fickle  ocean  has  to  do.  For  instance, 
on  the  Atlantic  coast  the  storms  are  gene- 
rally bred  and  nurtured  in  the  east  ;  the 
milder  weather  is  born  of  southern  or  west- 
ern winds,  and  therefore  it  is  that  those 
who  have  spent  much  time  upon  the  New 
Jersey  beaches  have  probably  noticed  that 
during  very  heavy  weather  the  waves,  as 
a  rule,  roll  straight  upon  the  shore ;  while 
when   the   surf  is  lighter  it  is  apt  to  run 

242 


Surf  and  Surf-  Bathing 

diagonally,  or,  as  they  say,  ''  sets "  from 
the  south.  On  the  Long  Island  coast  all 
this  is  reversed;  there,  when  the  storm- 
winds  prevail,  the  ''set"  is  strong  from 
the  east,  and  the  foam  and  breakers  race 
along  the  beach  from  Montauk  toward 
the  Metropolis ;  while  at  other  times  the 
surf  will  usually  run  straight  on.  It  is 
hardly  necessary  to  say  that  a 
surf  without  '*  set ''  is  far   more 


Figure  2. 


agreeable,  and 
somewhat  safer. 
A  bather  is 
not  forced  to 
fight  constantly 
against  the  impulse  that  is  drifting  him 
down  the  beach  and  away  from  compan- 
ions, ropes,  and  bathing-grounds. 

The  strength  and  height  of  the  waves 
depend  mainly  upon  influences  at  work 
far  out  upon  the  ocean  ;  but  the  beach, 
as  shaped  by  its  watery  assailants,  reacts 
upon  them  in  turn.     The  finest  surf  will 

243 


Surf  atid  Surf-  Bathing 

be  found  under  the  following  conditions  : 
First,  let  there  be  a  storm  well  out  at  sea, 
sending  the  big  rollers  straight  onto  the 
beach,  and  then  a  sharp  wind  off-shore  for 
a  few  hours.  The  effect  of  this  will  be, 
in  the  first  instance,  to  thin  the  waves;  and 
he  who  is  fortunate  enough  to  make  trial 
of  them  under  such  circumstances  will  find 
a  high,  clean-cut  surf,  each  breaker  of 
which  combs  over  in  even  sequence,  and 
yet  without  such  weight  or  body  of  water 
as  to  seriously  threaten  his  equilibrium. 
Should  that  same  wind  off-shore  blow  for 
a  few  hours  longer,  the  tops  of  the  waves 
will  be  cut  off,  and  the  ocean  become  too 
calm  to  be  interesting. 

I  speak  of  a  "  fine  surf; ''  but  were  each 
man  asked  what  he  understands  by  it,  or 
by  the  term  **good  bathing,'*  his  definition 
would  probably  be  largely  governed  by  his 
skill  and  ability  to  take  care  of  himself. 
For  instance,  what  would  be  highly  satis- 
factory to  a  good  surfman  would  be  alto- 
gether too  rough  for  those  compelled  by 
weakness,  timidity,  or  inexperience  to  stand 
near  the  shore  and  look  on ;  while  what 
might  be  agreeable  to  them  would  be 
tame  for  him.  The  opinion  of  such  as 
say,  "  Wasn't  it  splendid  to-day  !  Why, 
I  swam  way  out    to  the  bar,"  need  not 

244 


Surf  and  Surf-  Bathing 

be  considered.  They  don't  enjoy  surf- 
bathing  ;  it  is  only  the  swimming  that 
they  care  for,  and  they  would  doubtless 
be  even  better  pleased  at  any  point  on 
Long  Island  Sound.  But  what  I  take  to 
be,  and  what  I  mean  by,  "a  good  bath- 
ing-day," is  one  on  which  a  man  who 
understands  himself  can  take  the  surf  as 
it  comes,  either  alone  or  ''  with  convoy," 
and  yet,  when  there  is  an  ever-present  ex- 
citement in  the  knowledge  that  a  second's 
carelessness  may  result  in  an  overthrow  of 
both  his  person  and  his  pride. 

Turning  now  from  the  water  to  the 
beach  itself,  we  find  its  formation  varies 
from  day  to  day  and  from  year  to  year, 
almost  as  much  as  do  the  waves  that  are 
forever  smiting  it.  It  may  deepen  grad- 
ually or  abruptly  ;  and  the  shoaling  of  an 
abrupt  beach  is  usually  the  result  of  some 
days'  heavy  sea  ''setting"  from  one  direc- 
tion or  the  other,  which  cuts  away  the 
sand  above  low-water  mark,  and  spreads 
it  out  over  the  bottom.  But  that  charac- 
teristic which  at  the  same  time  varies  and 
affects  us  most  is  the  position  and  depth 
of  what  is  known  as  the  *' ditch;"  that  is, 
where,  sometimes  at  a  few  feet,  sometimes 
at  several  yards  from  the  shore,  will  be 
found   a   sudden    declivity   caused   by   the 

245 


Surf  and  Surf-  Bathing 

continual  pounding  of  the  surf  along  one 
line,  and  consequently  lying  farther  out  in 
heavy  weather,  and  conversely. 

As  a  source  of  danger  this  same  "ditch  " 
is  often  very  material.  Often  a  man  igno- 
rant of  the  surf,  perhaps  a  poor  swimmer, 
or  no  swimmer  at  all,  starts  to  wade  out 
waist-  or  breast-deep.  To  his  eyes  there 
is  no  sign  of  peril  —  one  step  more,  and  lo  ! 
he  is  beyond  his  depth  ;  and  that,  too,  just 
where  the  waves  are  pounding  him  down, 
and  the  conditions  most  potent  to  de- 
prive him  of  his  much-needed  presence  of 
mind.  Nor  is  this  all.  He  may  not,  of 
his  own  free  will,  take  that  last  step  which 
involves  him  in  all  this  difficulty,  for  it 
is  at  the  edge  oi  the  ''  ditch  "  where  the 
'*  undertow  "  is  strongest ;  nay,  more,  the 
very  strength  of  the  ''  undertow  ''  depends 
largely  upon  the  depth  of  the  ditch. 

Doubtless  we  have  all  heard  a  great  deal 
about  this  ''undertow,"  as  though  it  were 
some  mysterious  force  working  from  the 
recesses  of  a  treacherous  ocean  to  draw  un- 
wary bathers  to  their  doom.  As  a  matter 
of  fact,  its  presence  is  obviously  natural,  and 
the  explanation  of  it  more  than  simple. 
As  each  wave  rolls  in  and  breaks  upon  the 
beach,  the  volume  of  water  which  it  car- 
ries does  not  remain  there  and  sink  into 

246 


Surf  and  Surf-  Bathing 

the  sand:  it  flows  back  again;  and,  as  the 
succeeding  wave  breaks  over  it,  the  reced- 
ing one  forms  an  undercurrent  flowing 
outward  of  strength  proportionate  to  the 
body  of  water  contained  in  each  breaker, 
and,  again,  proportionate  in  a  great  meas- 
ure to  the  depth  of  the  ditch.  Where  this 
latter  is  an  appreciable  depression,  it  can 
be  readily  seen  that  the  water  of  receding 
waves  will  flow  into  it  with  similar  effect 
to  that  of  water  going  over  a  fall,  and  that 
a  person  standing  near  is  very  likely  to  be 
drawn  over  with  it,  and  thus,  if  the  ditch 
is  deep  enough,  carried  out  of  his  depth. 
This  is  all  there  is  to  the  much-talked-of 
**  undertow,"  and  the  numerous  accidents 
laid  to  its  account. 

It  may  be  well  to  speak  here  of  another 
phenomenon  not  infrequently  observed.  I 
do  not  recall  ever  seeing  the  name  by  which 
it  is  known  in  print;  and,  as  the  word  is 
ignored  by  Webster,  I  shall  invent  my  own 
spelling,  and  write  it  *'  sea-poose."  This 
term  is  loosely  used  on  different  parts  of 
the  coast;  but  the  true  significance  of  it  is 
briefly  this :  There  will  sometimes  come, 
at  every  bathing-ground,  days  when  the 
ocean  seems  to  lose  its  head,  and  to  act  in 
a  very  capricious  way.  On  such  occasions 
it  often  happens  that  the  beach  is  cut  away 

247 


Surf  and  Surf-  Bathing^ 


at  some  one  point,  presumably  where  the 
sand  happens  to  be  softer  and  less  capable 
of  resisting  the  action  of  the  water.  There 
will  then  be  found  a  little  bay  indenting 


Figure  3. 

the  shore,  perhaps  ten  feet,  perhaps  ten 
yards.  The  waves  rolling  into  such  a 
cove  are  deflected  somewhat  by  its  sides, 
and  **set"  together  at  its  head,  so  that  two 
wings  of  a  breaker,  so  to  speak,  meet,  and, 
running  straight  out  from  the  point  of 
junction,  form  a  sort  of  double  **  under- 
tow," which  will,  if  the  conditions  that 
cause  it  continue,  cut  out  along  its  course 
a  depression  or  trench  of  varying  depth 
and  length.      It  can  be  readily  understood 

248 


Surf  aud  Stir/-  Bathing 

that  such  a  trench  tends  to  strengthen  the 
current  that  causes  it ;  and  these  two  fac- 
tors, acting  and  reacting  upon  each  other, 
occasion  what  might  be  called  an  artificial 
"  undertow,"  which  is  sometimes  strong 
enough  to  carry  an  unwary  bather  some 
distance  out,  in  a  fashion  that  will  cause 
him  either  to  be  glad  he  is,  or  to  wish  he 
were,  within  the  rectangle  of  the  life-lines. 
I  hc-.ve  sometimes  heard  old  surfmen 
speak  of  what  they  call  a  *' false  poose;" 
but  I  have  never  been  able  to  find  out  just 
what  was  meant  by  the  expression,  much 
less  its  causes  and  character.  I  shall,  there- 
fore, leave  the  question  for  those  who  de- 
light to  delve  into  the  mysteries  of  local 
nomenclature. 


And  now,  standing  upon  the  dunes,  our 
eyes  have  wandered  over  the  expanse  of 
ocean  with  a  glance  more  critical  and  in- 
quiring as  it  drew  near  the  shore.  The 
salt  savor  of  the  breeze  is  at  the  same 
time  a  tonic  and  an  anodyne ;  we  are 
drowsy,  but  the  sea  yet  draws  us  to  itself 
with  an  irresistible  impulse.  The  waves 
are  rolling  straight  in,  and  breaking  high 
and  clean.  Shall  we  plunge  into  their  cool 
depths  ?  Shall  we  combat  their  strength, 
249 


iinr/  atta  Surf  -  Bathing 

or  ride  them  as  they  come  galloping  from 
the  blue  to  the  green,  and  from  the  green 
to  the  white,  until  at  last  they  fall  spent 
upon  the  gray  sand  of  the  beach  ?  Surely ! 
Who  is  there  can  stand  by  and  resist 
such  temptation  !  But  wait !  Surf-bath- 
ing is  not  a  solitary  sport.  See  !  the  beach 
is  thronged  with  gay  toilets  and  bright 
sunshades,  and  the  water  has  already  given 
place  to  many.  Watch  that  couple  as  they 
run  gracefully  down  to  the  shore.  They 
dash  confidently  out ;  now  they  have  al- 
most reached  the  line  where  the  waves  are 
breaking ;  he  takes  her  hands,  and  they 
stand  prepared  to  "jump  "  the  breakers  — 
and  then !  and  then  a  big,  foamy  crest 
curls  over  them,  and  falls  with  a  roar  ;  and, 
as  it  rolls  in,  you  think  you  see  a  foot 
reaching  up  pathetically  out  of  its  depth, 
and  now  a  hand  some  yards  away,  until  at 
last,  from  out  the  shallows  of  the  spent 
wave  two  dazed  and  bedraggled  shapes 
stagger  to  their  feet,  and  look,  first  for 
themselves,  and  then  for  each  other.  A 
broad  smile  runs  along  the  line  of  pretty 
toilets,  and  the  gay  sunshades  nod  their  ap- 
preciation. There  stand  some  men,  just 
where  the  breakers  comb;  and,  as  each 
wave  succeeds  its  precursor,  and  rises  into 
a  crest,  you  may  see  the  half-dozen  brown- 

250 


Surf  and  Stirf-Baihing 

armed  figures  shooting  over,  like  so  many 
porpoises,  and  plunging  head  foremost  un- 
der the  advancing  hill  of  water.  Look  ! 
there  come  some  big  ones  —  one,  two, 
three  of  them  !  The  bathers  see  them, 
too,  and  press  out  a  few  yards  into  deeper 
water ;  and  then  the  diving  commences. 
It  is  sharp  work  this  time  ;  the  big  ocean- 
coursers  are  running  close  upon  each  other's 
heels,  and  the  heads  scarcely  emerge  after 
the  first  before  the  second  is  curling  di- 
rectly above ;  now  they  have  passed,  and 
each  breathless  bather  looks  around  to  see 
how  the  rest  have  fared  —  three,  four,  five 
—  but  where  is  the  sixth  ?  A  roar  of 
laughter  floats  shoreward  as  a  demoralized 
form  is  seen  to  gather  itself  up,  almost 
upon  the  beach  ;  that  last  breaker 
of  the  trio  struck  too*  quickly 
for  him.  He  cannot  tell  you 
just  how  many  somersaults 
he  has  turned  since  the  ocean 
proceeded  to  take  him  in 
hand,  but 
he  is  sure 
that  they 
must  have 
numbered 
somewhere 
among    the 


Figure  4 


251 


Surf  and  Surf-  Bathing 

twenties.  Yes,  it  is  brisk  sport,  and  we 
must  **go  in." 

But  then  it  does  not  look  comfortable 
to  be  thrown  ;  nor  will  it  please  our  con- 
ceit to  so  minister  to  the  good-natured 
mirth  of  that  gay  company.  It  is  pleas- 
anter  to  be  among  the  laughers  ;  and  so 
we  shall  be.  To  that  end  a  few  hints  will 
perhaps  be  found  useful ;  and  even  though 
what  I  shall  say  may,  when  said,  seem  to 
be  obvious  enough,  yet  it  is  amazing  how 
few  people  will  of  themselves  perceive  the 
obvious,  and  utilize  their  perceptions.  You, 
my  scornful  friend,  who  think  you  know  it 
all,  you  will  go  to  Southampton  next  sum- 
mer, and,  —  the  spirit  of  prophecy  being 
upon  me,  —  you  will  be  thrown,  ignomin^ 
iously  thrown,  eight  times  inside  of  two 
weeks ;  so  remember  that  much  that  is 
"  obvious  "  is  yet  fairly  occult  after  all,  or 
at  least  might  as  well  be,  as  far  as  practice 
is  concerned.  .  And  now  to  return  to  the 
ocean  and  to  didactics. 

We  shall  assume,  in  the  first  place,  that 
you  are  able  to  swim  ;  and  further,  that 
you  are  not  minded  to  follow  the  inglo- 
rious, yet  really  dangerous,  example  of 
those  who  wait  for  a  calm  interval,  and 
then,  rushing  through  the  line  of  breakers, 
spend  their   time  swimming  out  beyond. 

252 


S  urj  and  Surf-  Bathing 


Well,  then,  take  your 
place  just  where  the  seas 
comb.  This  point  will  vary  somewhat 
with  the  height  of  the  waves  ;  but  you  will 
stand,  for  the  most  part,  in  water  about 
waist-deep  (as  shown  in  Fig.  i).  Should 
a  particular  breaker  look  to  be  heavier  than 
the  preceding,  remember  that  it  will  strike 
farther  out,  and  that  you  must  push  for- 
ward to  meet  it.  Then,  if  you  are  where 
you  should  be,  it  will  comb  directly  above 
your  head.  Wait  until  it  reaches  that  point 
of  its  development  (for  if  you  act  too  soon 
or  too  late  your  chances  of  being  thrown 
are  greatly  increased),  and,  with  the  white 
crest  just  curving  over  you,  dive  under  the 
green  wall  of  water  that  rises  up  in  front. 
Dive  just  as  you  would  from  a  low  shore, 
only  not  quite  so  much  downward,  —  say 
at  an  angle  of  twenty  degrees  oflF  the  hori- 


253 


Surf  and  Surf-  Bathiiig 

zontal  (Figs.  2  and  3),  your  object  being 
to  slip  under  the  incoming  volume  of  wa- 
ter, to  get  somewhat  into  the  ''  undertow," 
and  yet  to  run  no  risk  oi  running  afoul  of 
the  bottom.  The  heavier  the  wave,  the 
deeper  will  be  the  water  in  which  you 
stand,  and  the  deeper  you  can  and  should 
dive.  If  your  antagonist  be  very  big  and 
strong,  you  will  find  it  advisable  to  strike 
out  the  instant  you  have  plunged,  very 
much  on  the  theory  that  as  a  bicycle  will 
stand  when  in  motion,  and  fall  the  instant 
it  stops,  so  a  man  can,  by  swimming  under 
water,  keep  control  of  and  balance  himself 
much  better  against  the  peculiar  vibratory 
motion  which  one  experiences  when  un- 
der a  big  wave,  and  surrounded  by  conflict- 
ing currents.  Swimming  will  also  tend  to 
bring  you  to  the  surface  again  under  full 
control ;  and,  provided  you  have  acted  with 
judgment,  you  will  find  yourself,  when  the 
wave  has  passed,  standing  on  about  the  line 
from  which  you  plunged. 

A  thing  good  to  remember,  but  difficult 
to  explain  the  cause  of,  is,  that  extraordi- 
narily heavy  waves  almost  invariably  travel 
by  threes ;  that  is,  very  often,  when  you 
have  been  standing  at  one  spot,  and  taking 
perhaps  a  dozen  breakers,  you  will  of  a 
sudden  see,  rolling  in  from  the  bar,  a  hill  of 

254 


Sni-f  and  Sicrf-  Bathing 

water  and  foam  much  higher  and  heavier 
than  those  that  have  gone  before.  Then 
be  sure  that  there  are  two  more  of  similar 
magnitude  close  behind  it,  and  push  for- 
ward as  fast  as  you  can.  If  it  seems  very 
heavy,  and  you  have  time,  you  may  try 
to  get  beyond  the  break,  and  ride  them 
in  comfort ;  but  if  this  is  impossible,  you 
must  dive  low,  swim,  come  to  the  surface 
promptly,  dash  the  water  from  your  eyes, 
and  be  ready  for  numbers  two  and  three ; 
and  when  all  have  passed,  if  you  are  still 
in  good  shape,  you  will  find  some  long 
draughts  of  air 
very  agreeable. 

Sometimes   it 
will  happen    that 
you  cannot  get  far 
enough    out   in 
time   to  meet 
these    big    seas 
at    the    proper 
point;  and  then 
it  is  that  your 
reputation  as  a 
surf-man    will 
be   in  danger, 
at  least  among 
those     who 

judge    by  sue-  ^^«,,  6. 

255 


Surf  and  Surf-  Bathing 

cess  alone.  There  is  only  one  thing  to  do: 
dive  under  the  foam  as  it  boils  toward  you 
—  dive  deep  and  swim  hard.  The  wave 
and  the  '*  undertow  "  will  be  here  com- 
mingled in 
a  sort  of 
whirlpool, 
and  you 
will  need 
all  your 
strength 
and  skill  to 


Figure  7. 


keep  *'head  on." 
Suffer  yourself  to 
be  twisted  but 
a  few  inches  from  your  course,  and  —  but 
doubtless  you  understand. 

There  is  a  rather  amusing  way  of  play- 
ing with  the  surf  on  days  when  it  is  fairly 
high,  but  thin,  and  without  much  force. 
Instead  of  diving  as  the  breaker  com- 
mences to  comb,  throw  yourself  over  back- 

256 


Surf  and  Surf-  Bathing 


ward,  and  allow  your  feet  to  be  carried  up 
into  its  crest.  Provided  you  have  judged 
its  strength  accurately,  and  given  yourself 
just  enough  back  somersault  impetus,  you 


Figure 


will  be  turned 
completely  over 
in  the  wave  ( Figs. 
4  and  5),  and 
strike  with  it, 
and  upon  your 
feet;  only,  be  careful  in  picking  out  your 
plaything,  and  don't  select  one  that  will 
pound  you  into  the  sand,  or  perhaps  re- 
fuse to  regulate  the  number  of  somersaults 
according  to  your  wishes  or  intentions. 


\ 


257 


Surf  and  Siirf-  Bathing 

Now,  it  is  more  than  possible  that,  be- 
ing a  good  swimmer,  and  having  first  made 
personal  trial  of  both  beach  and  surf,  you 
may  desire  to  offer  your  escort  to  —  well, 
to  your  sister  ;  and  right  here  let  me  note 
a  few  preliminary  cautions  :  — 

Never  attempt  to  take  a  woman  into 
the  surf  where  there  is  any  reason  for  an 
experienced  surfman  to  anticipate  a  sea 
which,  unaccompanied,  you  would  have 
any  difficulty  in  meeting ;   or 

When  the  water  in  the  ditch  is  more 
than  breast-deep  ;   or 

When  the  *'  undertow  "  or  ''  set  "  is 
especially  strong ;   or 

When  there  is  any  irregularity  of  the 
beach  which  might  cause  a  **sea-poose" 
to  form. 

You  may  also  find  it  wise  to  observe  the 
following  :  — 

Never  take  a  woman  outside  the  life- 
lines, and  never  promise  her,  either  ex- 
pressly or  by  implication,  that  you  will 
not  let  her  hair  get  wet.  Above  all,  im- 
press it  upon  her  that  she  must  do  exactly 
as  you  say,  that  a  moment's  hesitation  due 
to  timidity  or  lack  of  confidence,  or,  worse 
than  all,  anything  like  panic,  or  an  attempt 
to  break  from  you  and  escape  by  flight,  is 
likely  to  precipitate  a  disaster  which,  un- 
258 


Surf  and  Surf-  Bathing 


Figure  9. 


pleasant  and  humiliating  when  met  alone, 
is  trebly  so  in  company. 

And  now,  having  read  your  lecture  on 
the  duty  of  obedience,  etc.,  lead  on.  Of 
course,  if  the  water  deepens  gradually  and 
the  surf  is  very  light,  you  may  go  beyond 
the  breakers ;  but  in  that  event  no  skill  is 
called  for,  and  no  suggestions  needed. 

There  are  several  good  ways  of  holding 
a  woman  in  the  surf,  but  the  best  and 
safest  in  every  emergency  is  that  shown 
in  Fig.  6.  You  thus  stand  with  your  left 
and  her  right  side  toward  the  ocean;  and 
as  the  wave  rises  before  you,  your  com- 

259 


Stir/  and  Surf-  Bathing 


panion  should,  at  the  word,  spring  from 
the  sand,  while  at  the  same  moment  you 
swing  her  around  with  all  your  force,  and 
throw  her  backward  into  the  advancing 
breaker  (Fig.  7).  You  will  observe  that 
your  own  feet  are  always  firmly  planted 
on  the  bottom,  the  left  foot  about  twelve 
inches  advanced,  and  your  body  and  shoul- 
ders thrown  forward,  so  as  to  obtain  the 
best  brace  against  the  shock  of  the  water. 
The  question  of  preserving  your  equilib- 
rium is  largely  one  of  proper  balancing, 
especially  when,  as  is  often  the  case,  you 
are  carried  from  your  foothold,  and  borne 
some  yards  toward  the  shore.  Your  com- 
panion's weight  and  impetus,  as  well  as  the 
position  in  which  she  strikes  the  wave,  — 
that  is,  directly  in  front  of  you,  —  all  tend 
to  make  your  anchorage  more  secure,  or, 
in  case  of  losing  it,  your  balance  the  easier 
to  maintain.  The  body  of  the  wave  will, 
of  course,  pass  completely  over  you  (as 
shown  in  Fig.  8).  The  instant  it  has  so 
passed,  and  your  head  emerges,  clear  your 
eyes,  regain  your  position  (you  will  practi- 
cally drop  into  it  again),  and  if  carried 
shoreward,  press  out  to  the  proper  point,  so 
as  to  be  ready  for  the  next. 

Should  an   exceptionally  heavy  sea  roll 
in,  endeavor  to  push  forward  to  meet  it  as 

260 


Surf  and  Surf-  Bathing 


if  you  were  alone,  being  very  careful,  how- 
ever, not  to  get  out  of  depth.  Flight  is 
almost  always  disastrous.  If  the  sea  strikes 
before  you  can  reach  it,  there  is  nothing 
to  do  but  bend  your  head  and  shoulders 
well  forward,  brace  yourself  as  firmly  as 
possible,  and  thus,  presenting  the  least  sur- 
face for  the  water  to  take  hold  of,  and 
getting  the  full  benefit  of  the  *'  under- 
tow," swing  your  companion  (who  has 
also  bent  low  and  thrown  herself  forward) 
horizontally  under  the  broken  wave  (Fig. 
9).  If  she  has  had  much  experience,  it 
will  be  still  better  for  you  to  dive  together, 
side  by  side. 

Before  dropping  this  branch  of  the  sub- 
ject, I  will  call  attention  briefly  to  another 
way  of  carrying  a  woman  through  the  surf 
Let  her  stand  directly  in  front  of  and  fa- 
cing you  (as  shown  in  Fig.  10).  Standing 
thus,  she  springs,  and  is  pushed  backward 
through  the  wave  somewhat  as  in  the 
former  instance  (Fig.  i  i).  The  disadvan- 
tages oi  this  method  are  :  First,  that  you 
lose  in  impetus  by  pushing  rather  than 
swinging  your  companion ;  second,  that 
she  cannot  herself  see  what  is  coming  ; 
third,  that  neither  is  in  as  convenient  a 
position  to  hurry  forward  to  meet  an  ex- 
ceptionally heavy  wave ;  and  fourth,  that 
261 


Surf  and  Surf-  Bathing 


Figure  lo. 


you  have  not  as  good  a  hold  in  case  a  sea 
breaks  before  it  reaches  you,  or  any  other 
emergency  arises. 

In  all  that  has  been  said,  bear  in  mind 
that  the  cardinal  secret  of  surf-bathing,  in 
all  contingencies,  is  proper  balancing,  and 
nothing  but  experience  seconding  knowl- 
edge can  teach  you  to  measure  forces  and 
judge  correctly  to  that  end. 


262 


Surf  and  Surf-  Bathing 

So  far  the  sea  has  been  a  good-natured, 
though  sometimes  a  rough,  playfellow  — 
never  really  irritable  or  vindictive  ;  but 
unfortunately  this  disposition  cannot  be 
counted  upon.  That  there  are  dangers 
attendant  upon  ocean-bathing,  he  who  has 
been  present  when  human  life  was  being 
fought  for  can  abundantly  testify.  To  be 
sure,  most  of  the  "  accidents  "  are  results 
of  carelessness  or  ignorance  ;  but  then  the 
same  may  be  said  of  accidents  everywhere, 
and  a  short  summary  of  the  dangers  pecul- 
iar to  the  surf  may  be  of  use.  Some  of 
these  have  been  already  indicated,  as,  for 


Surf  and  Stirf-  Bathing 

instance,  dangers  arising  from  the  ''  under- 
tow." This  by  itself  is  not  Hkely  to 
trouble  any  one  except  a  very  poor  swim- 
mer, and  then  only  when  the  ditch  is  deep  ; 
for  the  reason  that  the  power  of  the  "  un- 
dertow ''  is  confined  practically  to  within 
the  line  of  breakers,  and  cannot  carry  a 
bather  any  distance.  In  the  case  of  a 
"sea-poose,"  however,  it  is  different.  I 
have  seen  a  current  of  this  character  run- 
ning out  for  many  yards  beyond  a  man's 
depth,  and  against  which  a  strong  swimmer 
would  find  it  almost  impossible  to  make 
headway.  Fortunately  such  instances  are 
rare ;  but  he  who  may  be  thus  entangled 
must  remember,  the  moment  he  realizes 
his  predicament,  that  by  attempting  to 
fight  the  current  and  swim  directly  toward 
the  beach,  he,  as  a  general  thing,  only 
wastes  his  strength.  He  must  strike  out 
for  a  few  yards  along  shore ;  and  a  slight 
effort  so  directed  will  soon  take  him  out 
of  the  dangerous  influence. 

Again,  the  "  undertow  ''  may  help  to 
a  disaster  in  the  following  way  :  As  a  rule, 
there  is  no  real  danger  in  being  thrown  by 
a  breaker  ;  but  there  have  been  occasions 
when  an  inexperienced  or  exhausted  bather 
has  been  struck  in  such  a  way,  or  thrown 
with  such  force,  as  to  be  more  or  less  in- 

264 


Surf  and  Sttrf-  Bathhig 


jured  or  dazed  ;  and  then,  before  he  could 
regain  control  of  himself,  and  while  pros- 
trate in  the  water,  he  has  been  drawn  back 
by  the  *'  undertow,"  rolled  under  and 
pounded  down  by  each  succeeding  breaker, 
and  finally  even  drowned. 

The  great  majority,  however,  of  drown- 
ing accidents  on  the  seaboard  —  that  is, 
of  those  which  can  be  even  indirectly  at- 
tributed to  the  surf — take  place  under 
the  following  circumstances  :  Some  strong 
swimmer  comes  to  the  beach,  entirely  ig- 
norant of  the  strength  and  ways  of  the 
ocean ;  he  sneers  at  the  warnings  of  surf- 
men,  and,  choosing  a  calm  interval,  dashes 
through  the  line  of  breakers,  and  amuses 
himself  by  swimming  out ;  ropes  and  log- 
buoys  are  entirely  beneath  his  notice.  Fi- 
nally he  begins  to  feel  tired ;  the  chop  of 
the  seas  splashes  up  into  his  nose  and  eyes ; 
it  is  not  so  easy  as  swimming  in  still  water, 
and  he  concludes  to  come  in.  Now,  the 
chances  are  that  he  will  do  this  without 
any  serious  difficulty,  even  though  he  does 
not  quite  understand  how  to  swim  high, 
with  long  strokes  when  on  the  inner  slope 
and  summit  of  each  wave,  until  it  fairly 
shoots  him  toward  the  shore ;  and  then 
to  rest  and  hold  his  own  while  on  the 
outer  slope  and  in  the  trough.     There  is 

265 


Surf  and  Surf-  Bathing 

always,  however,  just  a  possibility,  and  the 
stronger  the  surf  the  more  possible  is  it, 
that  the  inexperienced  swimmer  can  not 
come  through  the  line  of  breakers  when 
and  where  he  wants  to :  he  must  wait 
their  pleasure  ;  and  if  he  has  measured  his 
strength  closely,  and  the  delay  be  long, 
it  is  easy  to  see  how  that,  in  trying  to 
pass,  he  may  be  thrown  down  into  the 
"  undertow,"  and  lack  sufficient  strength 
to  extricate  himself. 

Next  to  caution  and  life-lines,  surf  dan- 
gers are  best  provided  against  by  a  long 
rope,  with  a  slip-noose  at  the  end,  either 
wound  on  a  portable  reel  or  coiled  and 
placed  at  the  lowest  point  of  the  beach. 
Then  a  rescuer,  throwing  the  noose  around 
his  waist,  can  make  his  way  to  a  drowning 
man,  and  both  can  be  drawn  in  by  those 
on  shore.  In  default  of  some  such  contri- 
vance, the  next  best  thing  is  for  all  the 
able-bodied  to  form  a  chain  of  hands ;  for, 
let  me  say,  there  is  nothing  more  difficult, 
even  for  a  strong  swimmer  and  expert 
surfman,  than  bringing  a  drowning  per- 
son in  through,  or  out  of,  a  line  of  heavy 
breakers. 

I  recall  an  incident  which  happened 
some  years  since  at  Bridgehampton,  Long 
Island,  and  which  illustrates  the  difficulty 

266 


Surf  and  Surf-  Bathing 

of  which  I  speak.  A  young  clergyman 
had  arrived  only  the  day  before  :  he  was 
unable  to  swim  a  stroke ;  and  his  first  ex- 
ploit was  to  wade  out  into  the  ocean,  en- 
tirely ignorant  of  the  fact  that  the  ditch 
was  that  day  both  abrupt  and  deep, —  or 
perhaps  even  that  there  was  such  a  thing 
as  a  ditch,  —  and  that  a  single  step  would 
take  him  from  a  depth  of  four  feet  and 
safety,  into  one  of  six  and  considerable 
danger.  Whether  he  took  the  step,  or  the 
"undertow"  took  it  for  him,  is  not  mate- 
rial; but  the  bathing-master  and  one  other 
saw  the  trouble,  dashed  in,  and,  reaching 
the  drowning  man,  were  able  to  keep  his 
head  above  water.  But,  what  with  this  and 
fighting  the  waves,  they  could  not  seem  to 
make  an  inch  shoreward.  There  were  not 
many  on  the  beach  at  the  time,  and  only 
four  or  five  men  who  could  be  of  any  use. 
A  chain  of  hands  was  promptly  formed, 
but  it  was  not  long  enough  to  bring  the 
inside  man  into  water  less  than  waist-deep; 
and  the  '*  undertow,"  pouring  into  the  big 
ditch,  sucked  with  all  its  might.  So  they 
swung  backward  and  forward,  now  gain- 
ing, now  losing  ground.  And  meanwhile, 
the  bathing-master  and  those  nearest  him, 
being  out  of  depth,  were  fast  becoming 
exhausted.      All,  so  far,  had  instinctively 

267 


Surf  and  Surf-  Bathiji^ 


tried  to  fight  the  waves,  hut  it  was  evident 
that  a  change  of  tactics  was  necessary ;  and 
fortunately  at  that  moment  a  great  ridge 
of  water  was  seen  sweeping  in.  Thought 
came  quickly  then,  and  the  word,  ''  Let  it 
throw  us !  "  was  passed  down  the  line  ;  then 
it  struck,  and  for  a  moment  there  was  a 
confused  tangle  oi  legs  and  arms  and  heads 
and  bodies  swirled  around,  over,  under, 
and  against  each  other.  Those  closer  in- 
shore were  hurled  upon  the  beach ;  but 
the  chain  held  together  long  enough  to 
drag  the  others  into  a  place  of  safety. 
Though  there  were  no  casualties  of  any 
consequence,  I  am  very  certain  that  each 
link  of  that  chain  will  not  soon  forget  the 
experience,  and  will  appreciate  the  truth 
of  my  last  statement. 

And  now  let  me  try  to  temper  all  this, 
by  saying  that  the  dangers  of  surf-bathing 
are,  in  reality,  much  less  than  those  that 
beset  still-water  swimming,  where  one  is 
usually  out  of  his  depth,  and  with  very 
little  chance  of  escape  in  case  of  cramp  or 
exhaustion.  Only  make  friends  with  the 
ocean,  learn  its  ways,  study  its  moods  a 
little,  and  humor  it,  while  you  keep  care- 
ful watch  against  any  sudden  ebullition  of 
passion.  Those  who  stand  aloof  can  never 
realize  the  pleasure  and  excitement  of  the 

268 


Surf  and  Surf-  Rathitig 

Sport  they  forego  ;  nor  shall  they  know  the 
profound  satisfaction  born  of  successfully 
combating  a  trio  of  big  rollers,  which  have 
tossed  companions  and  rivals  in  confusion 
on  the  beach. 


269 


COUNTRY    CLUBS 

AND 

HUNT   CLUBS  IN   AMERICA 

By  Edward  S.  Martin 


Kennels  and  Stables  of  the  Rockaway  Hunt  Club. 

LONG  time  ago  men  discov- 
ered that  by  clubbing  together 
they  could  maintain  a  town 
house  on  a  scale  of  comfort 
and  even  luxury  which  would 
be  very  much  beyond  the  in- 
dividual means  of  most  of  them.  It  was 
convenient  to  have  such  houses,  and  for 
more  than  a  century  they  have  been  a  fa- 

273 


Cmtntry  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  A  tnerica 

miliar  feature  of  the  life  of  great  cities. 
The  application  of  the  same  principle  to 
the  maintenance  of  a  country  estate  is  a 
matter  of  comparative  novelty,  and  largely 
of  American  development. 

The  English  country  house  abounding 
all  over  Great  Britain  has  apparently  made 
the  country  club  a  much  less  necessary  ap- 
purtenance to  English  cities  than  to  ours. 
The  well-to-do  and  fashionable  Briton  hies 
him  to  town  in  the  spring,  and  stays  there 
until  the  summer  is  well  advanced.  While 
he  stays  in  London  he  is  abundantly  occu- 
pied and  amused ;  and  when  he  leaves,  it  is 
to  go  to  his  country  house  or  to  a  watering- 
place,  or  to  travel  by  land  or  sea,  or  to  shoot, 
or  pay  a  round  of  visits  and  get  ready  for 
the  hunting  season.  All  England  is  a  sort 
of  country  club  for  London,  and  the  lesser 
British  towns  are  ministered  to  in  like  man- 
ner by  the  rural  districts  about  them.  Sport 
has  long  been  a  fixed  habit  of  the  British 
people;  and  for  generations  provision  has 
been  made  for  it  in  foot-ball  and  cricket 
grounds,  in  village  commons,  in  shooting- 
preserves,  and  in  that  profusion  of  hunt 
clubs  which  makes  it  difficult  in  the  hunt- 
ing-season to  ride  fifty  miles  in  any  direc- 
tion without  coming  within  hearing  dis- 
tance of  a  huntsman's  horn. 

274 


Country  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  America 

But  for  the  resident  of  an  American  city 
the  conditions  are  different.  As  long  as 
his  town  was  small  and  his  income  limited, 
the  urban  American  got  on  well  enough. 
He  was  too  busy  adding  to  his  income  to 
have  much  time  for  recreation  ;  he  had 
crude  ideas  about  playing ;  and  when  he 
wished  to  rest  his  eyes  with  a  sight  of  the 
green  fields,  he  could  get  into  his  wagon, 
and  drive  in  a  few  minutes  beyond  the 
limits  of  paved  streets  into  the  country. 
As  his  city  grew,  his  income  increased, 
the  nervous  strain  of  living  increased,  the 
hours  of  his  work  shortened,  and  the  strenu- 
ousness  of  his  application  was 
aggravated.  He  began  to  need 
more  recreation,  more  country 

air,  more 
country 
scenes.  If 
the  town 
he  lived 
in  was 
very  big, 
he  some- 
times got 
himself  a 
house  in 
its  8  u  b- 

The  Dinitig-Room  of  the  Rockaway  Club.  UrOS  J     anCl 


Country  Clubx  and  Hitnt  Clubs  in  America 

whether  as  urban  or  suburban  resident,  he 
indulged  himself  more  and  more  in  horses. 
Then  gradually  the  country  clubs  began  to 
appear.  Horse  was  usually  at  the  bottom 
of  them  at  the  beginning  ;  though  bicycle 
has  grown  to  be  horse's  rival  nowadays, 
and,  allied  with  golf,  disputes  his  prece- 
dence. City  people  who  keep  horses  for 
pleasure,  or  bicycles,  want  a  place  to  ride 
and  drive  to.  It  must  not  be  too  far  off, 
and  the  roads  leading  to  it  must  be  fit  to 
ride  over.  Dwellers  in  suburbs  want  the 
same  thing  ;  and  they  want,  further,  more 
than  city  folks,  a  social  centre,  where  balls 
can  be  had  and  dinners  eaten,  and  where 
in  the  late  hours  of  the  afternoon,  when 
the  men  have  got  back  from  town,  they 
can  get  sight  of  one  another,  play  tennis, 
polo,  golf,  or  base-ball,  and  swap  conver- 
sation, horse-points,  and  invitations  to  din- 
ner. One  purpose,  further,  the  country  club 
serves, — to  make  a  summer  home  for  bach- 
elors whose  business  keeps  them  near  town 
all  summer,  and  for  laborious  benedicts 
whose  families  go  farther  away  than  they 
can  follow  them.  It  would  seem,  then, 
that  there  are  two  species  of  country  club, 
—  the  suburban  club,  which  grows  out  of 
the  needs  of  the  dwellers  in  a  suburb,  and 
that  which  is  devised  for  the  convenience 

276 


Cowitry  Clubs  atid  Hunt  Chtbs  in  A  merica 


of  members  who  live  in  town.  But,  prac- 
tically, the  distinction  is  not  very  definite. 
There  must  be  a  city  before  there  can  be 
suburbs.  Suburban  country  places  are  apt 
to  cluster  around  a  good  country  club,  even 
if  they  were  not  there  in  the  beginning ; 
and  a  club  designed  to  meet  the  wants  of 
suburbanites  is  sure  to  gain  a  membership 


After  a  day^s  r7in  at  Cedarhurst  —  the  Rockaivay  Club* 
277 


Country  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  America 


from  city  people,  who  want  to  share  its 
privilege  and  enjoy  its  sports. 

Originally,  as  has  been  said,  the  corner- 
stone of  the  country  club  was  Horse. 
When  the  average  American  began  to  find 
himself  master  of  more  money  than  he 
required  for  the  simpler  comforts  of  life, 
one  of  the  first  luxuries  to  which  he  treated 
himself  was  a  horse.  If  he  could  afford 
more  horses  than  sufficed  for  mere  conve- 
nience, he  kept  others  for  pleasure.  Time 
was  when  the  American  sole  idea  of  a 
pleasure  horse  was  a  trotting-horse,  and 
every  American  country  town  has  been 
used  these  many  decades  to  provide  itself 
with  an  agricultural  trotting-race  track  as 
one  of  its  earliest  necessities ;  but  of  later 
years,  while  the  trotting-horse  has  contin- 
ued to  be  a  favorite,  the  taste  for  other 
varieties  of  equine  merit  has  developed. 
Horses  that  are  good  to  look  at,  and  to 
haul  carriages  handsomely,  and  to  carry 
riders,  have  been  felt  to  be  worth  cultivat- 
ing as  well  as  horses  that  are  good  to  go 
fast.  The  horse  that  the  country  clubs 
are  interested  in  is  the  horse  that  hauls  a 
dog-cart,  a  surrey,  a  tea-cart,  a  drag,  or  a 
plain  family  wagon  ;  the  horse  that  con- 
tributes to  the  perfection  of  a  tandem  or 
a  four-in-hand;  the  horse  that  can  jump  a 
278 


Country  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  America 


fence,  and  run  in  a  steeplechase  ;  and  the 
small  but  active  quadruped  that  carries  the 
polo-player.  In  spite  of  the  immense 
spread  of  the  bicycle,  it  is  still  true  that 
wherever  you  find  a  country  club,  you  find 
a  centre  of  interest  in  all  these  equine  de- 
velopments. In  most  country  clubs  polo 
becomes  sooner  or  later  a  prominent  sport. 
It  furnishes  a  very  active  exercise  for  the 
men  who  play  it,  and  a  lively  spectacle 
to  the  women  and  children  and  more  pru- 
dent men  who  prefer  to  look  on.  It  also 
serves  as  a  summer  horse-sport  for  those 
organizations  which  are  half  country,  half 
hunt  clubs,  whereby  men  can  get  their 
summer  exercise,  and  put  themselves  in 
proper  condition  for  the  hunting  when  it 
comes.  Sometimes  country  clubs  develop 
out  of  polo,  as  the  Buffalo  Country  Club, 
or  the  Dedham  Polo  Club,  which  latter, 
though  not  strictly  a  country  club  as  yet, 
serves  many  of  the  purposes  of  one  to  its 
members ;  sometimes  polo  is  merely  a 
development,  as  in  the  Country  Club  of 
Brookline  or  of  Westchester ;  and  often- 
times polo  and  country  club  both  develop 
out  of  hunt  clubs,  as  is  the  case  with  the 
Myopia  Club  of  Hamilton,  and  the  Mea- 
dowbrook  and  Rockaway  Clubs  on  Long 
Island. 

279 


Country  Clubs  ami  Ilmtt  Chibs  iti  America 


The  Radnor  Kennels. 


The  Brook- 
line  Coun- 
try Club  is 
about  five 
miles  from 
the  b  u  s  i- 
ness  centre 
of  Boston. 
Good  roads  lead  to  it  from  all  direc- 
tions, and  make  it  accessible  by  driving 
from  Boston  and  most  of  the  suburban 
cities  and  villages  that  environ  that  fortu- 
nate town.  The  grounds  of  the  club  in- 
clude acreage  enough  for  a  half-mile  track, 
a  course  for  steeplechasing,  a  polo-field, 
golf-links,  and  as  many  tennis-courts  as 
are  called  for,  besides  woodland,  shaded 
avenues,  and  long  stretches  of  lawn.      The 


'''       //    y  ' 


'  -^-^ddM^: 


A    Corner  oj  Lhe  Dinin^-Hall. 
280 


Coioiiry  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  ADtiricil 

club-house,  facing  the  lawns  and  polo- 
field,  stands  back  several  hundred  yards 
from  the  street,  from  which  a  shaded 
avenue  leads  to  it.  It  is  the  house  that 
was  bought  with  the  estate,  and  enlarged 
to    meet  the    requirements    of   the    club. 

Without  any  vio- 
lent pretensions 
to    architectural 


'J^ie  Radnor  Hnnt  Club  of  Philadelphia,  quartered  near  Bryn  Afawr, 


beauty,  it  is  handsome  enough,  and  has 
reception-rooms,  ball-rooms,  dining-rooms, 
billiard-rooms,  bath-rooms,  bedrooms,  and 
piazza-room  enough  for  the  club's  neces- 
sities. Its  stables  are  proportionately  ample 
and  convenient.  Its  activities  continue  all 
the  year  round ;  but  as  a  large  proportion 
of  its  members  get  them  to  the  seashore 
281 


Country  Clubs  ajtd  Hii7it  Clubs  in  America 

or  elsewhere  in  summer,  its  liveliest  times 
are  in  the  spring  and  fall.  Steeplechasing, 
flat-racing,  pony-racing,  coursing,  and  gym- 
kana  games  are  its  habitual  exercises ;  and 
occasionally  it  holds  a  sort  of  blizzard  of 
sport,  when  a  horse-show,  a  dog-show,  or 
some  other  sporting  spectacle,  is  provided 
every  day  for  a  week.  The  activity  of  its 
polo-players  is  continuous  all  through  the 
season  ;  and  golf,  which  is  a  godsend  to 
country  clubs,  has  already  taken  an  im- 
portant place  in  its  activities.  It  will  be 
seen  that  this  club  abounds  in  what  the 
theatrical  managers  call  *'  attractions.'' 
When  anything  of  special  moment  offers, 
its  grounds  are  gay  with  fair  women,  brave 
horses,  bicycles,  grooms,  carriages,  and 
gentlemen  ;  and  when  nothing  in  particu- 
lar is  going  on,  it  is  still  a  pleasant  place 
to  drive  to  and  get  dinner. 

What  the  Brookline  Country  Club  is, 
most  of  the  other  country  clubs  are,  or 
hope  to  be,  always  with  such  differences 
as  environment  contributes.  Such  clubs  as 
the  Essex  County,  the  Catonville,  or  the 
Westchester,  placed  in  a  centre  of  summer 
homes,  are  liveliest  in  summer ;  while  the 
hunt  clubs  which  have  country-club  fea- 
tures are  most  active  in  the  fall. 

Most  of  the  hunt  clubs  are  the  outcome 
282 


Country  Clubs  aud  Hunt  Clubs  in  America 

of  the  same  development  of  wealth,  leisure, 
and  sporting  proclivities  to  which  the  rise 
of  the  country  clubs  is  due. 

Hunting  in  England  seems  to  have 
grown  originally  out  of  the  necessities  of 
country  life.  For  centuries  the  most  im- 
portant form  of  British  wealth  was  land. 
All  important  Englishmen  had  landed  es- 
tates ;  most  of  them  got  their  chief  rev- 
enues from  them,  and  most  of  them  lived 
a  good  part  of  the  year  in  one  or  another 
of  their  country  places.  They  had  to 
amuse  themselves  as  they  could.  The 
habit  of  the  chase  came  down  to  them 
from  remote  times ;  and  when  they  had 
no  wild  creature  left  that  was  chasable  but 
the  fox,  they  cherished  the  fox,  and  duly 
and  diligently  pursued  him.  In  some 
parts  of  the  United  States  it  has  happened 
that,  ever  since  the  country  was  first  settled, 
foxes  have  been  chased  by  country  gentle- 
men, who  needed  some  active  sport  to 
beguile  their  seasons  of  leisure.  Thus  it 
was  in  Virginia,  so  long  before  the  Revo- 
lution that,  when  Lord  Fairfax  and  George 
Washington  kept  hounds  and  hunted  them, 
fox-chasing  was  an  old  story  to  the  horse- 
men of  those  parts.  But  our  modern 
American  revival  of  fox-hunting  and  cross- 
country riding  springs  not  so  much  from 
283 


Country  Clttbs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  A  merica 

the  need  of  beguiling  the  monotony  of  the 
Hves  of  landed  proprietors  and  country 
gentlemen,  as  from  the  necessities  and  as- 
pirations of  city  men.  Fox-hunting,  or 
even  drag-hunting,  is  an  expensive  amuse- 
ment ;  and  though  in  country  districts 
where  it  has  been  started  the  farmers 
oftentimes  share  its  excitements  and  help 
it  on,  the  revenues  of  agriculture  do  not 
often  suffice  for  its  support.  In  some  few 
exceptional  cases  the  sport  has  been  a  true 
local  development  of  the  country  hunted ; 
but  much  more  often  is  it  a  suburban  en- 
terprise, originated  and  supported  by  city 
men  who  want  to  hunt,  and  whose  busi- 
ness, if  not  their  homes,  is  in  town.  Out 
of  twenty-five  American  and  Canadian 
hunt  clubs,  at  least  twenty  have  this  sub- 
urban characteristic.  It  is  partly  due  to 
local  conditions,  and  especially  to  the  fact 
that  this  is  a  country  oi  small  farmers, 
who  own  their  farms,  instead  of  landed 
proprietors  and  tenant  farmers.  But  it  is 
also  a  result  of  that  world-wide,  contem- 
poraneous tendency  which  is  making  all 
the  great  cities  bigger,  and  many  of  the 
lesser  towns  great;  so  that  even  in  Great 
Britain  the  two  hundred,  more  or  less, 
hunts  which  flourish  in  spite  of  hard  times, 
doubtless  draw  a  very  much  more  impor- 

284 


Country  Clubs  ami  Hunt  Clubs  in  Atnerica 


the  Meadowbrook  Club  at  Southampton. 


tant  proportion  of  their  support  from  city 
men  than  they  did  twenty-live  or  even  ten 
years  ago. 

The  city  man's  desire  to  hunt  is  based 
neither  on  affectation  nor  on  mimicry. 
Americans  do  not  hunt  foxes  or  ride  across 
country  because  it  is  done  in  England.  The 
strain  of  EngHsh  blood  may  show  itself, 
perhaps,  in  American  horsemanship  ;  but 
Americans  ride  across  country  because  that 
is  a  far  livelier  and  more  interesting  form 
of  riding  than  riding  on  the  road,  even 
when  it  is  a  country  road,  —  much  more 
so  when  it  is  a  park  road  or  a  paved  street. 
And  when  Americans  hunt  foxes,  they  do 
it  for  the  same  reason  that  the  English  do, 

285 


Country  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  A  merica 

because  following  the  trail  of  a  fleet  and 
wily  animal  is  better  sport  than  follow- 
ing a  cross-country  trail  artificially  laid,  and 
because  the  fox  is  the  only  wild  creature 
fit  for  the  chase  that  will  live  and  flourish 
in  proximity  to  man.  That  the  city  man, 
be  he  Briton  or  American,  should  wish  to 
hunt  is  a  reasonable  desire.  The  circum- 
stances of  his  daily  life  are  such  as  draw 
on  his  vitality  and  abate  his  vigor.  When 
once  he  has  put  himself  in  the  way  of 
making  an  adequate  living,  his  physical  life 
is  apt  to  be  easy.  He  gets  no  taste  of 
cold  or  hunger  and  hard  physical  labor. 
He  is  too  apt  to  be  overfed  and  overheated, 
to  drink  more  than  is  good  for  him,  to 
work  too  hard  with  his  head  and  too  little 
with  his  body,  to  be  luxuriously  lodged, 
and  generally  to  be  made  too  insidiously 
comfortable.  He  has  to  fear  the  debili- 
tating influences  of  such  a  life,  both  on  his 
physique  and  on  his  character.  His  sim- 
plest remedy  is  some  sort  of  out-of-door  ex- 
ercise which  involves  some  self-denial,  some 
exertion,  and  a  reasonable  amount  of  grit. 
Partly  for  his  liver's  sake,  partly  for  his 
amusement,  he  gets  astride  the  horse.  Then, 
if  he  has  in  him  the  quality  known  as  sport- 
ing-blood, mere  horseback  exercise  pres- 
ently palls  on  him.      It  is  too  monotonous. 

286 


Country  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  America 

He  wants  something  that  will  test  his 
horse's  capacity  and,  at  the  same  time,  his 
own  nerve.  Sometimes  he  finds  it  in  polo; 
but  unless  he  is  young  and  ardently  ath- 
letic, he  is  apt  to  find  it  more  to  his  taste 
in  hunting. 

So  it  is  to  this  desire  of  men  who  en- 
joy many  luxuries  to  add  to  them  one  more, 
that  will  counteract  some  of  the  others, 
that  the  recent  development  of  American 
hunting  is  largely  due.  If  any  hunt  is 
to  prosper,  it  must  include  among  its  back- 
ers a  certain  number  of  men  who  are  pre- 
pared to  take  it  seriously.  When  the 
hounds  go  out  some  one  must  go  with 
them,  — must  go  rain  or  shine,  whether  the 
spirit  moves  or  not,  whether  the  flesh  is 
willing  or  otherwise.  To  keep  up  a  hunt 
is  a  laborious  business;  and  there  must  be 
in  every  hunt  some  members  who  are 
willing  to  take  it  laboriously  when  that 
is  necessary,  and  hold  their  personal  con- 
venience secondary  to  the  demands  of  sport. 
Unless  the  master  of  the  hounds  evinces  a 
devotion  of  this  nature,  and  unless  he  has 
one  or  two  colleagues  on  whom  he  can 
rely,  the  hunt  is  apt  not  to  prosper.  These 
mainstays  of  a  hunt  must  be  able  to  com- 
mand a  considerable  degree  of  leisure.  If 
they  are   forthcoming,  and  are  willing  to 

287 


Coitiiiry  Clubs  and  Kunt  Clubs  i7i  America 


spend  their  strength  and  money  in  main- 
taining the  hunt,  they  will  usually  win  to 
their  support  a  following  of  less-deter- 
mined sportsmen,  with  less  time  to  spare, 
who  will  hunt  when  they  can,  pay  dues 
when  that  is  necessary,  and  lend  their 
countenance  and  a  limited  amount  of  per- 
sonal support  to  the  enterprise. 

New  York,  which,  awaiting  the  further 
development  of  Chicago,  is  more  than  any 
other  American  city  the  centre  of  Ameri- 
can enterprises,  is,  in  at  least  one  particu- 
lar, the  most  important  centre  of  American 
hunting.  There  are  more  men  in  New 
York  than  in  any  other  one  town  who 
want  to  hunt,  who  can  afford  to  hunt,  and 
who  are  willing  to  take  a  considerahle 
amount  of  trouble  to  do  it ;  and  though 
other  cities  had  hunts  long  before  New 
York  did,  no  other  American  city  has  so 
many  as  six  subsidiary  hunt  clubs  at  her 
doors.  The  most  noted  and  important  of 
these  six  New  York  hunts  is  the  Mea- 
dowbrook.  Its  pedigree  is  too  much  in- 
volved for  the  present  writer  to  trace  it 
with  much  hope  of  historical  accuracy  ; 
but  it  seems  to  derive,  with  more  or  less  in- 
direction, from  the  Queens  County  Drag 
Hounds,  organized  in  September,  1877,  by 
Messrs,    Robert   Center,   W.    C.   Peat,   A, 

?88 


Country  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  A  inerica 


ll'aitiug  for  the   ll'oyd. 
{I\Teet  of  the  Meado^vbrook  Hunt  at  Southampton,  L.I.,  itt  the  Fall  o/  iSqi.) 


Belmont  Purdy,  and  F.  Gray  Griswold,  at 
Meadowbrook,  Long  Island.  These  gen- 
tlemen or  their  assigns  hunted  the  Mea- 
dowbrook country  for  three  years.  Then 
their  pack  was  removed  to  Westchester 
County,  and  stayed  two  years.  Then  it 
went  back  to  Far  Rockaway,  Long  Island. 
Meanwhile,  Hempstead  was  occupied  by 
a  new  subscription  pack,  which  held  its 
first  meet  in  September,  1880,  and  took 
the  name  of  the  Meadowbrook  Hunt. 
The  old  Queens  County  pack,  after  mov- 
ing back  to  Far  Rockaway,  was  joined  by, 

289 


Country  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  A  merica 


or  merged  into,  the  Rockaway  Hunt  Club, 
and  still  exists  under  the  latter  name,  with 
kennels  and  a  club-house  at  Cedarhurst. 
One  of  its  founders,  Mr.  Griswold,  was 
lately  master  of  the  Meadowbrook  hounds. 
One  of  his  predecessors  in  that  office  was 
Mr.  Thomas  Hitchcock,  Jr.,  who  hunts  a 
pack  of  his  own  in  the  winter,  at  Aiken, 
S.C.  The  present  master  is  Mr.  Ralph 
M.  Ellis.  The  Meadowbrook  Club-house, 
near  Westbury,  is  a  pleasant  but  unpreten- 
tious house,  which  answers  for  a  sort  of 
country  club  for  the  neighboring  district. 
It  has  a  ball-room  and  ladies'  annex,  plenty 
of  bedrooms,  where  some  oi  the  members 
live  in  summer,  ample  stables  and  kennels, 
and  a  golf-links.  The  club  has  about  sev- 
enty members,  who  pay  annual  dues  of 
$ioo.  Its  pack  of  some  thirty-six  couple 
of  English  hounds  is  efficient,  and  well 
kept  up.  It  hunts  in  the  spring  from 
March  until  well  into  May,  and  in  the 
fall  from  Oct.  i  until  the  ground  freezes. 
Occasionally  it  hunts  wild  foxes;  but  it 
finds  so  many  obstacles  to  that  form  of 
sport  that  the  drag  is  its  main  reliance,  as 
it  is  of  all  the  other  clubs  near  New  York. 
Inasmuch  as  drag-hunting  is  generally  con- 
ceded to  be  an  inferior  sport  to  fox-hunt- 
ing, it  is  worth  while  to  consider  why  all 

290 


Coiaitry  Clubs  aftd  Hu7it  Clubs  in  A  merica 


the  hunt  clubs  near  New  York  prefer  it. 
The  reasons  for  the  Meadowbrook's  pref- 
erence are  partly  local.  The  woods  in  the 
twenty  square  miles  of  country  the  club 
hunts  over  are  large,  and  without  roads,  and 
the  foxes  in  them  can  seldom  be  persuaded 
to  break  covert  and  run  over  the  open 
country,  as  well-regulated  foxes  should. 
Another  important  reason,  which  applies 
to  the  majority  of  the  suburban  hunt  clubs, 


Lunch  on  Race-day  at  the  "  Ketmels,''^  the  Headquarters  of  tJte 
Elkridge,  Md.,  Hunt  Club. 


291 


Coiinfry  Clubs  and  Ihnii  C/i/bs  in  A  nierica 

is,  that  at  least  one-half  of  the  Meadow- 
brook's  members  are  men  of  business,  who 
go  daily  to  New  York  to  their  work. 
They  get  home  by  an  afternoon  train,  and, 
by  dint  of  hurrying,  gain  two  or  three 
hours  from  the  working-day,  which  they 
can  spend  on  a  horse's  back.  Accordingly, 
when  they  get  to  the  meet,  at  three 
o'clock  or  thereabouts,  there  is  not  time 
for  an  indefinite  search  after  a  ioy.,  even  if 
the  country  were  favorable  to  such  a  quest. 
The  Meadowbrook  men  want  a  sure  run 
whenever  they  go  out.  They  v^ant  it  to 
begin  promptly,  and  to  end  with  certainty 
in  time  for  dinner.  Obviously,  therefore, 
drag-hunting  fits  their  necessities  better 
than  fox-hunting.  They  take  the  best 
sport  they  can  get,  and  make  the  most  of 
it.  What  they  make  of  drag-hunting  is 
matter  of  notoriety  o\\  both  sides  of  the 
salt  seas.  They  ride  exceedingly  good 
horses  ;  their  hounds  are  swift,  and  their 
pace  is  fast.  The  great  Hempstead  plain, 
which  lies  near  them,  is  unfenced,  and  free 
from  obstacles,  an  admirable  place  to  gal- 
lop or  drive  over  at  most  seasons  of  the 
year.  But  when  they  leave  that,  and  strike 
the  neighboring  farming-lands,  the  fences 
are  frequent  and  strong,  of  the  post  and  rail 
variety,  and  from  four  to  five   feet  high, 

292 


Country  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  A  merica 


The  Start  /ro}n  the  Kennels.     TJie  Elkridge,  Md.,  Club 


Couuiry  dubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  America 

with  occasional  taller  ones.  Drag-hunting 
over  obstacles  of  this  sort  is  a  very  wakeful 
sport,  and  only  the  boldest  huntermen  on 
the  best  nags  can  hope  to  find  happiness 
in  it.  But  the  Meadowbrook  men  like  it. 
From  twenty  to  forty  riders  follow  their 
hounds  every  hunting-day  ;  and  the  sport 
grows  more  popular,  and  the  club  larger, 
from  year  to  year.  Steeplechases  are  a 
familiar  dissipation  of  the  Meadowbrook 
men,  and  occasionally  they  have  them  of 
the  point-to-point  variety.  Like  all  the 
hunt  clubs,  and  the  suburban  clubs  espe- 
cially, they  make  the  most  of  holidays. 

Cedarhurst,  the  seat  of  the  Rockaway 
Club,  is  only  twelve  miles,  or  thereabouts, 
from  Westbury.  Since  it  started  in  Far 
Rockaway  in  1878,  the  Rockaway  Club 
has  suffered  in  an  increasing  degree  from 
the  intrusions  of  settlers.  People  will  buy 
lots  and  build  suburban  houses  in  its  coun- 
try ;  and  as  hunting  cannot  be  successfully 
carried  on  in  a  country  that  is  all  lawn  and 
kitchen-gardens,  the  Rockaway  men  feel 
that  the  days  of  their  sport  are  numbered. 
But  while  any  country  is  left  them  to  ride 
over,  they  will  ride.  They  keep  about  fif- 
teen couple  of  hounds  at  their  kennels  near 
the  club-house  at  Cedarhurst,  and  go  out 
twice  a  week  from  September  to  January, 

1295 


dmntry  Clubs  atul  Itioit  Clubs  hi  Ajiierica 

and  in  March  and  April.  The  obstacles 
they  have  to  get  over  are  mainly  fences, 
from  three  feet  six  inches  to  five  feet  high. 
Walls  are  scarce  on  Long  Island,  as  also  are 
hedges  and  ditches.  Like  the  Meado\^- 
brook  Club,  the  Rockaway  combines  the 
features  of  a  country  club  with  its  hunting. 
It  has  an  attractive  club-house,  with  golf 
and  tennis;  and,  like  the  Meadowbrook 
again,  it  has  a  strong  polo  team,  which 
fights  matches  with  the  teams  of  the 
Meadowbrook,  Myopia,  Brookline,  Ded- 
ham,  Westchester,  and  other  strong  clubs. 
The  essentials  to  fox-hunting  are  men, 
horses,  foxes,  and  a  country  fit  to  hunt 
over.  New  York  can  find  the  men  and 
the  horses,  but  it  is  not  blest  in  its  hunting 
country.  Philadelphia  is  better  off.  The 
oldest  Quaker  cannot  remember  a  time 
when  there  was  not  fox-hunting  within 
reach  of  Philadelphia.  Farmers  there- 
abouts kept  hounds,  and  hunted  them, 
before  the  Revolution ;  and  one  finds  allu- 
sions in  contemporary  literature  to  the  zeal 
with  which  British  officers  hunted  Penn- 
sylvania foxes  in  pre-Revolutionary  times 
from  the  Rose  Tree  Inn.  The  senior 
Philadelphia  hunt  of  our  day  is  the  Rose 
Tree,  at  Media.  It  began  about  1856, 
was  reorganized  in  1872,  and  got  a  charter 

296 


Country  Chibs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  A  inerica 


The  Pack  of  the  London,  Qnt.,  Club  in  front  of  t/ie  Clubhouse. 

in  1 88 1.  It  has  about  fifteen  couple  of 
American  hounds  from  Delaware  and  Ches- 
ter Counties,  Penn.,  crossed  with  hounds 
from  Maryland  and  Virginia.  Its  season 
is  from  December  to  April ;  its  hounds 
meet  three  times  a  week,  at  seven  a.m. 
two  days,  and  at  nine  a.m.  on  Saturdays. 
Philadelphians,  traditionally,  have  more 
leisure  than  the  men  of  New  York,  and 
seem  to  be  able  to  spare  mornings,  and 
indeed  whole  days,  for  hunting.  Business 
men  and  young  farmers  follow  the  Rose 
Tree  hounds,  and  the  fields  of  riders  range 
from  five  to  twenty-five.  The  club-house 
is  about  a  mile  from  Media.  The  club 
property  includes  the  old  stone  Rose  Tree 

297 


Country  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  Aincrica 


Tavern,  a  pretty  modern  club-house  near 
it,  and  some  eighty  acres  of  land,  on  which 
is  laid  out  the  club's  half-mile  track,  and 
part  of  its  steeplechase  course.  Of  the 
Rose  Tree  hunting,  a  member  of  the  club 
writes :  '*  For  the  old  fox-hunter  one  of 
the  most  interesting  features  of  the  hunt 
is  the  working  of  the  hounds  on  a  cold 
trail  early  in  the  morning  to  find  a  fox. 
When  the  scent  is  first  struck,  none  but 
the  old  experienced  hounds  can  make  it 
out ;  but  when  one  of  them  cries,  the 
pack  will  cluster  around,  and  as  they  work 
it  slowly  toward  the  cover,  the  scent  will 
grow  stronger  and  stronger,  until  the  cover 
is  reached,  when  the  burst  of  full  cry  from 
the  pack  gives  fair  warning  that  the  fox 
has  broken  cover.  Then  all  is  excitement, 
and  hounds  and  riders  are  away  on  the  run. 
This  cold  drag  frequently  takes  one  or  two 
hours  to  work  out.'' 

This  has  about  it  the  flavor  of  real  fox- 
hunting, a  very  different  sport  from  the 
drag-hunting  of  less  favored  regions.  One 
can  learn  with  the  Rose  Tree  hounds  the 
tricks  of  the  fox,  and  watch  the  contest 
between  his  strategy  and  the  sagacity  of 
the  hound.  The  country  about  Media  is 
rough  ;  and  the  foxes  usually  get  away,  but 
not  until  they  have  given  the  hounds  and 

298 


Country  Clubs  and  l/unt  Clubs  in  America 

huntermen  good  runs.  One  learns  with 
regret  that  the  prosperity  of  this  excellent 
hunt  is  hardly  what  it  should  be.  It  has 
a  vigorous  and  enterprising  young  rival  in 
the  Radnor  Hunt,  with  a  club-house  and 
kennels  near  Bryn  Mawr,  which  seems  to 
have  superior  attractions  for  the  younger 
Philadelphians. 

About  Baltimore,  fox-hunting  is  as  old 
a  story  as  in  Philadelphia ;  and  the  history 
of  it  is  not  to  be  told  in  a  paragraph.  Hunt 
clubs  have  flourished  and  died  there,  and 
had  their  successors  these  many  years.  The 
active  clubs  at   present  are  the  Elkridge 


n 


Headquarters  of  the  Green  Spring   Valley  Hunt  Club  —  the  Old  Stone 
Tavern  on  the  Reisterstown  Turnpike,  Baltimore  County,  Md. 

299 


Country  Clubs  and  Hunt  C/ubs  in  America 

and  the  Green  Spring  Valley.  The  older 
and  larger  club,  the  Elkridge,  has  a  club- 
house and  kennels  about  five  miles  on  the 
Roland  Park  side  oi  Baltimore.  Its  house 
is  large,  and  has  a  ball-room  attached  ;  and 
it  serves  many  of  the  purposes  of  a  coun- 
try club.  The  club  has  an  excellent  pack, 
a  large  membership,  and  plenty  of  good 
hunting  country  within  reach.  Being 
strong  on  its  social  side,  it  does  not  dis- 
dain drag-hunting,  particularly  in  the  ear- 
lier part  of  the  season  ;  but  foxes  are  its 
main  reliance  for  sport,  and  the  master, 
Mr.  Samuel  George,  goes  as  far  as  is  neces- 
sary to  find  them.  Maryland  hospitality 
makes  it  possible  for  the  Elkridge  meets 
to  be  held  comfortably  twenty-five  miles 
from  home,  so  that  the  country  that  is 
open  to  the  club  is  practically  unlimited. 
The  younger  organization,  the  Green 
Spring  Valley,  includes  many  members  of 
the  Elkridge.  It  started  in  1892,  hunts 
the  wild  fox  only,  and  usually  finds  him. 
It  has  at  present  a  pack  of  about  a  dozen 
couple  of  American  hounds.  Its  members 
are  young  business  men  of  Baltimore,  with 
a  supplementary  sprinkling  of  farmers.  It 
meets  twice  a  week,  at  hours  least  incon- 
venient for  working  men,  and  its  fields 
average  about  twenty.      Its  club-house  is 

300 


Coniit7-y  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  America 

an  old  stone  tavern  about  seven  miles 
out  of  Baltimore.  The  club  has  very 
much  of  the  sporting  spirit,  is  inexpen- 
sive, and  of  simple  habits,  and  under  the 
mastership  of  Mr.  Redmond  Stewart  gives 
good  promise  of  prosperity. 

In  Virginia,  Maryland,  the  Carolinas, 
and  Georgia,  there  has  always  been  more 
or  less  unorganized  fox-hunting  by  farmers 
and  others  in  the  winter  months ;  so  that 
the  roll  of  the  American  hunt  clubs  with 
recognized  titles  and  regular  meets  is  by 
no  means  a  complete  index  of  the  fox- 
hunting done  in  the  United  States.  In 
Kentucky,  too,  fox-hunting  is  a  sport  as 
familiar  as  one  would  expect  it  to  be  in  a 
State  first  settled  by  sportsmen,  and  always 
famous  for  its  horses.  But  fox-hunting 
there  seems  to  be  an  occasional  recreation, 
the  feature  of  a  holiday,  or  taken  up  when 
the  spirit  prompts.  There  are  good  hounds 
in  Kentucky,  some  of  them  of  high  degree 
and  long  descent.  It  seems  not  to  be  diffi- 
cult to  get  together  a  pack,  and  horses  are 
always  abundant  and  fit  in  the  blue-grass 
region.  One  reads  of  notable  fox-hunting 
by  large  parties  assembled  for  the  purpose 
as  early  as  August,  and  of  ten-mile  runs, 
over  fence  and  wall,  through  underbrush 
and  whatever  intervenes,  with  large  fields, 

301 


Cotintry  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clnhs  in  America 


and  many  mounted  ladies  in  the  following. 
But  of  organized  clubs  keeping  hounds  and 
hunting  on  stated  days,  there  is  no  report. 
Among  the  best-kno\Vn  Virginia  packs  is 
the  Deep  Run  hounds  of  Richmond,  which 
go  out  twice  a  week  in  the  season.  At 
Warrenton,  in  northern  Virginia,  in  a 
horse-raising  district,  the  Warrenton  Hunt 
Club  hunts  twice  a  week,  under  the  mas- 
tership of  Mr.  James  K.  Maddux.  There 
is  a  sprinkling  of  English  settlers  near 
Warrenton ;  and  the  hunt  is  popular  with 
them  as  well  as  with  the  other  farmers, 
who  train  their  horses  in  its  runs.  Sad  to 
say,  the  country  about  Warrenton  is  un- 
suited  to  the  pursuit  of  foxes,  and  it  is  only 
occasionally  that  they  are  hunted. 

The  Swannanoa  Hunt  Club  of  Ashe- 
ville,  N.C.,  affords  sport  to  Asheville's  win- 
ter visitors.  It  has  a  pretty  club-house. 
The  local  foxes  about  Asheville  know  the 
resources  of  the  country  too  well  to  afford 
adequate  sport;  but  by  importing  stranger 
foxes,  and  turning  them  loose,  the  club 
gets  very  good  runs. 

Still  farther  south,  at  Aiken,  S.C,  Mr. 
Hitchcock's  hounds  help  make  life  pleas- 
ant to  refugees  from  a  Northern  winter. 
In  his  Northern  home,  near  Westbury, 
Long  Island,  Mr.  Hitchcock  is  one  of  the 

302 


Country  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  America 


Cross  Country  in  the  Genesee  Valley. 
The  Genesee  Hunt  Club. 


pillars  of  sport  in  the  Meadowbrook  Club. 
His  hunting  at  Aiken  is  different  from 
most  other  American  fox-hunting.  The 
country  is  rough,  the  woodland  extensive, 
and  the  hounds  are  less  under  the  hunts- 
man's eye,  and  more  on  their  own  respon- 
sibility, than  in  the  Northern  hunting. 
After  thorough  experiment,  Mr.  Hitch- 
cock has  found  the  American  hound  better 
adapted  to  his  use  than  English  hounds, 
and  has  now  a  strong  pack  of  modern 
American  fox-hounds,  about  thirty  couple, 
which  he  hunts  all  winter.  His  pack 
meets  from  December  to  May,  three  times 
a  week   at    daylight,   and    goes   out  with 


303 


Country  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  America 

fifteen  or  twenty  riders  in  the  field.  The 
fisnces  about  Aiken  are  rail-fisnces  when 
there  are  any,  but  much  of  the  country  is 
not  enclosed. 

Except  for  the  somewhat  nebulous  Aga- 
wam  Hunt  Club  of  Narragansett,  the  sole 
hunting  stronghold  of  New  England  seems 
to  be  the  seat  of  the  Myopia  Club,  started 
in  1882  at  Hamilton,  some  twenty  miles 
north  of  Boston.  It  has  a  farm  sparsely 
planted  with  golf-holes,  and  a  comfortable 
club-house,  which  is  the  home  of  some  of 
the  members  in  the  summer  months,  and 
is  a  centre  of  activities  all  summer  long 
for  golf  enthusiasts  and  polo-players.  The 
Myopias  have  tried  fox-hunting,  but  found 
it  impracticable,  or  at  least  too  inconve- 
nient, and  have  fallen  back  on  drag-hunt- 
ing as  better  suited  for  their  circumstances. 
Their  hunting  begins  early  in  September, 
and  lasts  three  months.  They  have  about 
twenty-five  couple  of  hounds  of  British 
descent,  which  meet  three  times  a  week, 
and  scour  the  country  for  twenty  miles 
around.  Their  fields  vary  from  fifteen  to 
twenty-five  riders.  Their  country  is  a 
country  of  stone  walls  three  feet  high  and 
upward ;  and  the  obstacles  being  reasonably 
low,  their  runs  are  tolerably  fast.  Most  of 
the  Myopia   huntermen   are  sons   of  toil, 

304 


Country  Cbtbs  and  lliatt  Clubs  in  Atnerica 

doing  business  in  Boston,  and  they  adjust 
their  sport  to  the  more  imperative  demands 
of  their  more  serious  occupations. 

In  the  Genesee  Valley,  in  Livingston 
County,  New  York,  there  has  been  an  or- 
ganized hunt  for  nearly  twenty  years,  the 
fame  of  which  is  exuberant  among  hunting 
Americans.  Its  headquarters  are  at  Gene- 
seo,  the  county  town  of  Livingston  County, 


luccc  uj  i/ie  liieciuowuruvk  Hunt  at  Mr.  Theodore  RooseveW s  houses 
Oyster  Bay,  Long  Island. 


Cotmtry  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  A  inerica 

and  the  home  of  Mr.  W.  A.  Wadsworth, 
M.  F.  H.  Mr.  Wadsworth  and  other 
members  of  his  family,  and  other  famiUes, 
are  owners  of  large  landed  estates  in  the 
Genesee  Valley,  and  actually  live,  for  most 
of  the  year,  on  or  near  their  land.  This 
makes  the  conditions  of  existence  in  the 
neighborhood  of  Geneseo  different  from 
those  that  ordinarily  obtain  in  American 
farming  country,  which,  as  a  rule,  in  the 
North  at  least,  is  owned  in  small  lots  by 
the  actual  cultivators  of  the  soil.  The 
Genesee  Valley  hunting  is  an  indigenous 
growth,  begun  for  the  amusement  of  resi- 
dents of  the  valley,  conducted  from  the 
time  of  its  organization  at  the  cost  and 
under  the  direction  of  the  present  M.  F.  H. 
The  club  has  an  organization,  but  its  dues 
are  nominal  and  it  has  no  club-house.  Mr. 
Wadsworth  keeps  up  the  pack,  and  mounts 
and  pays  the  huntsmen  and  whips.  Such 
reputation  as  the  hunt  enjoys  is  due  first 
to  him  and  to  the  durable  and  rational 
quality  of  his  devotion  to  sport.  The 
hunt  finds  other  good  backers  in  the 
farmers  of  the  valley,  in  the  owners  of 
country  places  who  spend  a  large  part  of 
the  year  there,  and  in  earnest  sportsmen 
from  Buffalo,  Batavia,  Rochester,  New 
York,  Chicago,  and  other  places,  who  hunt 

306 


Country  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  America 


regularly  once  or  twice  a  week  in  the 
season.  It  also  attracts  visitors,  who  come 
in  increasing  numbers  to  get  a  taste  of  the 
quality  of  its  entertainment.  The  hunting 
country  is  a  strip  of  farm  and  woodland, 
twenty  miles  long  or  thereabouts,  and  from 
four  to  eight  miles  wide,  through  which 
flows  the  Genesee  River.  The  country  is 
beautiful ;  the  enclosures  are  large ;  the 
fencing  includes  almost  all  varieties  of  rail, 
board,  and  picket  fences.  Horse-raising 
is  one  of  the  industries  of  the  district,  and 
the  huntermen  are  well  mounted.  The 
hounds  of  the  Genesee  Valley  Hunt  hunt 
wild  foxes  three  times  a  week  from  the  lat- 
ter part  of  September  until  it  gets  too  cold, 
which  usually  happens  about  Christmas, 
Some  drag-hunting  was  done  last  fall  with 
a  small  pack  set  apart  for  that  purpose; 
but  drag-hunting  is  regarded  in  Geneseo 
as  a  subsidiary  sport,  to  be  winked  at  and 
endured  in  the  present  state  of  human 
weakness,  but  hardly  to  be  countenanced, 
much  less  encouraged.  Mr.  Wadsworth's 
hounds  are  either  imported  or  oi  English 
stock,  and  from  twenty  to  thirty  couple  of 
them  are  always  ready  for  work.  The 
field  of  riders  varies  from  twenty  to  fifty; 
and,  though  the  numbers  dwindle  some- 
what as  the  season  advances,  the  hounds 

307 


Country  Cluhs  aj/d  Hit  tit  Clubs  in  A) 


A   Meet  of  the 


have  a  strong  following  as  long  as  the 
hunting  lasts.  The  country  is  too  exten- 
sive to  admit  of  earth-stopping,  and  the 
foxes  usually  get  away,  though  eight  or 
ten  are  killed  every  year  ;  but  the  hounds 
usually  find,  good  runs  are  the  rule,  and 
notable  runs  are  common. 

The  best  hunting  in  the  Genesee  Val- 
ley is  in  November  and  December.  The 
prettiest  and  gayest  hunting  is  in  October, 

308 


Country  CInhs  and  Hunt  Clubs  ift  America 


Rockan'tiy  11  nut  Clttb. 


To  be  jogging  after  Mr.  Wadsworth's  pack 
about  eleven  o'clock  on  a  Saturday  late  in 
October,  is  to  be  riding  through  a  charm- 
ing valley  at  a  delightful  time  of  year, 
with  every  prospect  of  five  or  six  hours  of 
happmess.  On  such  a  Saturday  in  1894 
the  meet  was  at  a  village  some  eight  miles 
from  the  kennels.  It  was  a  pretty  village, 
the  day  was  a  perfect  October  day,  and 
the    meet    of   hounds    and    horsemen,   of 

309 


Country  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  America 


ladies  in  carts  and  traps  and  on  hunters, 
of  participants  and  well-wishers  and  dis- 
interested spectators,  was  a  stimulating  and 
cheerful  sight.  Then  came  the  leisurely 
riding  across  country  from  covert  to  covert, 
through  woods  and  down  into  gullies,  over 
fences  at  one's  leisure  at  the  easiest  place, 
all  the  time  in  the  sunshine,  with  the  brisk 
air  making  one  younger  with  every  breath 
of  it,  and  the  hounds  working  industri- 
ously, and  keeping  every  observer's  expec- 
tation primed. 

And  when  presently,  after  an  hour  or 
more  of  progressive  investigation,  the 
hounds  found  and  were  off,  what  a  stir 
and  enlivenment,  as  the  field  broke  into  a 
gallop,  and  streamed  off  across  country, 
over  field  and  stream  and  fence  and  road, 
every  emulous  hunterman  eager  to  better 
his  place,  every  tyro  shadowing  his  chosen 
pilot  as  closely  as  he  dared,  every  bold  and 
experienced  rider  speculating  as  he  rides 
on  the  next  turn  of  the  pack,  with  a  keen 
scrutiny  as  he  rises  at  one  fence  for  the 
weak  place  in  the  next  one.  When  there 
is  a  weak  spot  or  a  low  place,  what  a  com- 
fort to  have  it  come  conveniently  into  one's 
line  !  When  there  is  none,  but  the  rails 
rise  high  and  strong  across  the  field,  what 
joy,  when  one   has    tightened    one's    rein 

310 


Country  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  America 

and  made  at  them,  to  have  one's  horse 
actually  clear  them,  and  then  to  glance 
back  and  see  the  little  group  of  less  fortu- 
nate riders  on  the  farther  side  !  It  is  con- 
ceivable that  there  are  men  who  like  to 
jump  high  fences;  but  doubtless  the  more 
common  experience  is,  that  a  five-foot  fence 
affords  a  delightful  sensation  after  one  is 
about  three-quarters  over  it,  but  that  up 
to  that  point  it  is  a  solemn 
and  unwelcome  obstacle, 
that  cannot  be  dodged 
without  loss  and   regret. 

Do  you  suppose  any  sin- 
cere person  really  regrets  it 
when  there  is  a  check  after      The  Button  o/ the  Man. 

.  -1  r  treat  Club— the  Oldest 

even  three  or  four  miles  of         organized hwu  ciub 

1  J  n  •  !!        '-n  ...  in  America. 

hard  galloping  r  1  o  stop 
while  the  hounds  are  running  is  misery, 
of  course;  but  to  pull  up  with  one's  bones 
all  whole  and  one's  credit  saved,  —  how 
can  any  hunterman  of  sound  discretion  re- 
gret that  ? 

The  day  I  speak  of,  the  fox  got  away; 
but  what  a  good  and  satisfying  day  it  was, 
and  how  proud  that  little  fox  should  have 
been  to  have  made  so  much  sport  for  so 
many  honest  folks  at  such  comparatively  in- 
significant inconvenience  to  himself!  The 
lady  who  fell  off  got  on  again  ;   the  man 

311 


Country  Clubs  ajtd  Hunt  Clubs  in  Avicrica 


Taking-  the  Hounds  out  for  Exercise.     The  Genesee  Hunt  Club. 


who  got  the  spectacular  cropper  wasn't 
hurt.  The  competent  surgeon  who  usu- 
ally rides  in  the  first  flight  in  the  Genesee 
Valley  runs  got  his  exercise  that  day  with- 
out ever  getting  off  his  mare,  except  to 
eat  his  lunch.  And  yet  there  are  people 
who  shudder  at  the  hazards  of  fox-hunt- 
ing, and  grieve  that  sons  of  solicitous 
mothers,  and  fathers  of  dependent  fami- 
lies, should  venture  their  necks  in  such  a 
sport ! 

Of  the  Canadian  hunts,  the  chief  is  the 
Montreal    Hunt,   started    as   long    ago    as 
1826,  and  probably  the   oldest  organized 
312 


Country  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  Aincrica 

hunt  club  in  America.  Its  kennels  and 
club-house  are  in  Montreal.  Its  hunting 
country  lies  in  the  islands  of  Montreal, 
Jesus,  and  Bizard,  good  farming  country, 
with  timber  fences, stonewalls,  and  ditches. 
The  members  get  to  the  meets  by  train  or 
otherwise,  according  to  the  distance.  The 
hounds  meet  three  times  a  week  at  eleven 
A.M.,  from  the  middle  of  August  to  the 
end  of  November.  There  is  an  earth- 
stopper  among  the  club  servants,  a  conse- 
quence of  which  is  that  eight  or  ten  brace 
of  foxes  are  killed  during  the  season.  The 
club  membership  is  about  one  hundred, 
and  the  dues  of  $50  a  year  help  to  main- 
tain the  pack.  The  present  master  is  Mr. 
H.  Montague  Allan. 

The  London  (Ontario)  Hunt,  another 
strong  club  with  a  large  membership  and 
a  suburban  club-house,  dates  from  1885. 
It  has  a  pack  of  a  dozen  couples,  and  usu- 
ally finds  the  toothless  and  insensate  anise- 
seed  bag  more  convenient  for  its  pursuit 
than  the  evasive  fox.  Under  the  master- 
ship of  Mr.  Adam  Beck,  it  sometimes 
takes  its  hounds  across  the  Detroit  River, 
and  makes  a  field-day  for  the  riding  popu- 
lation of  Detroit. 

Toronto,  the  horse-dealing  centre  of 
Canada,  has  its  hunt,  of  course  ;  a  drag- 
313 


Cotintry  Clubs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  A } 


The  Pack  of  the 
Myopia  Hunt 
Club. 


hunt  which  combines  the  accompHshment 
of  business  ends  with  the  pursuit  of  pleavS- 
ure.  Fifteen  couple  make  up  the  present 
pack  of  the  Toronto  hounds,  and  Mr.  F. 
H.  Beardmore  has  them  out  three  times  a 
week  during  the  short  Canadian  season. 

With  these  twenty-five  hunt  clubs,  — 
almost  all  of  them  started  within  twenty 
years,  and  most  oi  them  much  younger, — 
it  will  be  seen  that  hunting,  as  an  Ameri- 
can sport,  has  made  a  vigorous  start,  and 
promises  to  make  a  permanent  and  grow- 
ing impression  on  the  habits  of  our  people. 


314 


Country  Clubs  ami  Htitit  Clubs  in  A  incrica 


Once  the  idea  of  the  possibility  of  hunting 
is  disseminated,  the  rest  will  take  care  of 
itself,  and  clubs  will  spring  up  where  there 
is  a  demand  for  them.  Chicago  has  every- 
thing that  it  wants.  It  will  want  hunting 
presently,  and  will  surely  get  it.  St.  Louis, 
which  already  has  a  vigorous  country  club, 
has  only  a  short  step  farther  to  take.    Wher- 


IVhere  the  Dogs  are  Kept.     The  Genesee  Hunt  Club,  Genesee,  N.  Y. 


Conn  fry  Cltil's  (Hid  1 1  nut  Clubs  in  America 


The  Myopia  Chib  House  at  Hainilion,  Mass. 


ever  there  is  wealth  there  will  be  leisure. 
Wherever  there  is  wealth  and  leisure  the 
horse  will  multiply  in  the  land,  and  there 
will  be  hardy  men  who  will  dare  to  ride 
on  his  back.  Once  horse-riding  becomes 
a  habit  in  a  highly  civilized  American  com- 
munity, we  may  expect  hunting  to  follow. 
That  is  in  part  because  hunting  is  a  grow- 
ing fashion,  but  much  more  because  it  is  a 
sport  of  great  merit,  which  is  bound  to  win 
its  own  way  wherever  a  chance  is  given  to 
it.  As  one  of  the  most  picturesque  of 
sports,  it  should  be  welcomed  for  thq  vari- 
ety and  color  it  brings  to  American  life. 
Wherever  there  is  hunting  there  are  red 
coats  —  either  to  ride  in  or  dine  in  —  stee- 
plechases, horse-shows,  hunt-balls,  polo- 
316 


Country  Chibs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  A  incrica 

playing,  and  much  pomp  and  panoply  of 
pleasure;  all  of  which  is  highly  decorative, 
and  has  a  spectacular  value,  which  affects 
the  existence  of  thousands  of  people  whose 
participation  in  it  is  confined  to  the  not 
unimportant  office  oi  looking  on.  Hunt- 
ing is  virile,  and  it  is  wholesome.  Men 
get  hurt  in  it  sometimes,  but  seldom  very 
seriously;  and  many  men  get  materially 
benefited. 

Moreover,  the  money  spent  in  hunting 
is  spent  in  our  own  country,  and  goes  di- 
rectly into  the  pockets  of  Americans  who 
need  it.  Whatever  brightens  country  life, 
and  checks  the  tendency  of  the  cities  to 
swallow  up  all  the  money,  and  monopo- 
lize all  the  fun,  is  a  benefit.  Whatever 
sport  induces  well-to-do  Americans  to  dis- 
burse their  surpluses  in  their  own  land, 
among  their  brethren,  instead  oi  flocking 
for  that  purpose  to  Europe,  is  also  a  bene- 
fit, and  one  the  promotion  of  which  no 
true  patriot  will  care  to  hinder.  Let  us 
have  as  much  of  our  fun  at  home  as  we 
can;  and  let  us  think  twice  before  we  sniff 
at  any  development  of  wholesome  sport 
that  helps  to  make  that  possible.  Some 
men  who  hunt  get  health  and  strength 
from  it,  which  they  expend  in  activities 
more  directly  useful.     Encourage  them  in 


Cowitry  Cbibs  and  Hunt  Clubs  in  A  merica 


their  hunting,  for  it  does  them  good. 
Other  men  get  less  benefit ;  but  their  sup- 
port helps  to  keep  hunting  alive,  and  their 
money  is  useful  to  the  farmers,  grooms, 
innkeepers,  and  surgeons,  veterinary  and 
otherwise,  who  have  honestly  earned  it. 
Encourage  them,  too,  for  they  are  good 
for  sport.  Still  other  men  hunt  who,  if 
critically  considered,  may  be  estimated  to 
be  good  for  little  else.  Of  these  it  may  be 
said,  that  though  they  may  not  be  indis- 
pensable to  sport,  at  least  if  they  were  not 
hunting  they  would  probably  be  less  inno- 
cently occupied.  Encourage  these  also ; 
for  when  they  are  hunting  they  are  out  of 
mischief,  and,  so  far  as  lies  in  them,  are 
fulfilling  their  mission  in  life. 


~^\v 


r^e 


Keniteh  of  tJie  Myopia  Hunt  Club. 


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